
Class Jjlfc 50 

Book-rB-e. V'Z- 






CQEOUCHT OEHJSIS 



THE BRITISH IN IOWA 



I 




WILLIAM BROOKS CLOSE 



THE BRITISH IN IOWA 



BY 
JACOB VAN DER ZEE 




PUBLISHED AT IOWA CITY IOWA IN 1922 BY 
THE STATE HISTOEICAL SOCIETY OF IOWA 



.B8 Vz 



COPYRIGHT 1922 BY THE STATE 
HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF IOWA 



THE ATHENS PRESS 
IOWA CITT IOWA 



JAN -2 ^3 

©ClA61}080'i 






5 



EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION 

The story of the British in Iowa as told by Mr. 
Van der 2ee in this volume consists of two essays : 
one tells of the British Emigrants to lotva; the 
other relates the history of the British Invasion 
of Northivestern Iowa. The first essay is a gen- 
eral survey of the English, Scotch, Irish, and 
Welsh elements in the population of Iowa; while 
the second essay is a more detailed study of the 
English Colony in the vicinity of Le Mars. 

Benj. F. Shambaugh 

Office of thk Superintendent and Editor 

The State Historical Society of Iowa 

Iowa City Iowa 



JAN -2 '23 



CONTENTS 

Editor's Introductioit 3 

Author's Preface 7 

PART I 
BKITISH EMIGRANTS IN IOWA 

I. Pointing the Way to Iowa 17 

II. State Encouragement of Immigration 32 
III. British Elements in the Population 

OF Iowa 42 

PART II 

BRITISH INVASION OF NORTHWESTERN 
IOWA 

I. The Close Brothers 57 

II. Farming the Virgin Land, 1878-1879 . 63 

III. The Closes Extend Their Holdings . 68 

IV. Headquarters at Le Mars 72 

V. A Pamphlet on Farming in Iowa . . 77 

VI. Iowa Made Attractive to Englishmen 87 

VII. English Settlers AVelcomed at Le Mars 94 

VIII. Formation of the Iowa Land Company 99 

IX. Prohibition and English Immigration 109 

X. Later History of the Close Brothers 113 

5 



6 CONTENTS 

XI. Contributions to Agriculture . . . 120 
XII. Immigrant Farmers in the English 

Colony 129 

XIII. Farm Pupils in the English Colony . 141 

XIV. Iowa Englishmen and the Rugby 
Colony 157 

XV. Fame of the Le Mars Colony .... 161 
XVI. Business and Professional Life in the 

English Colony 174 

XVII. A Story of Coal 178 

XVIII. Games and Sports Among the English 187 
XIX. Saloons and Other Things American 210 
XX. Social Life: The Prairie Club . . . 221 
XXI. English Church Life in Northwestern 

Iowa 237 

XXII. Disappearance of the British from 

Northwestern Iowa 245 

Notes and References 253 

Index 295 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE 

Few phases of the history of the world so 
strongly and so steadily excite the imagination as 
the swarm ings of the races of mankind across the 
surface of the earth. Mongols and Tartars in 
Asia, and Hmis, Goths, Norsemen, Moors, and 
Turks in Europe: these and other peoples suc- 
cessively supplied much of what is spectacular 
and fascinating in the chronicles of ^the Old 
World. Equally striking and picturesque is the 
migration by land and sea of whole tribes of bar- 
barian Angles and Saxons from the forests of 
northern Grermany, and of Danes and Normans 
at a later day, to make their homes in the British 
Isles. 

To Americans who like to claim British and 
European origins as their own, the early wander- 
ings of the world's great human family extend a 
powerful appeal ; but more intimate and personal 
is the story of the peopling of the New World, 
not only by hordes of emigrants from the Old 
World but also by their American-born descend- 
ants. Covering a period of four centuries that 
extraordinary story, though now complete in its 
main outlines, has never been fully told and can 

7 



8 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 

not be so long as the American continents continue 
to drain the population reservoirs of older lands. 

For reasons chiefly economic and religious, mil- 
lions of the sons and daughters of Europe have 
abandoned their ancestral haunts to seek better 
homes in the vast open spaces of settlements over- 
seas. Other millions, lured by the call of the wild 
and moved by the spirit of adventure, likewise 
forsook friends and kindred to try their fortunes 
beyond the Atlantic. In North and South Amer- 
ica they braved the hostility of scattered tribes of 
aborigines and the hardships incidental to pioneer- 
ing in the wilderness. The struggle to conquer 
nature, begun by these enterprising colonists 
generations ago, has been continued by their de- 
scendants, constantly reenforced by fresh acces- 
sions from all the racial stocks of Europe. 

Pausing to look back over the years consumed 
in the long process of subduing and occupying a 
continent, anyone who reflects upon man's cease- 
less battle with the forces about him must be 
impelled to take pride in the results already 
achieved: cities and towns and farms, raised as 
if by magic from the soil, now stand as monuments 
to commemorate three centuries of human 
achievement. 

Impressed by what has been done to convert a 
wilderness into the abode of more than one hun- 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE 9 

dred millions of people, ever}^ citizen of Iowa who 
lets his fancy wander back into the century not 
yet ended since permanent settlements in his State 
began naturally inquires who the first inhabitants 
of his neighborhood were, where they came from, 
and what part they played as builders of the State 
and nation. From a contemplation of the Iowa 
pioneers he may go even farther back and seek to 
discover who his paternal and maternal ancestors 
were, where they dwelt, and what they did in their 
workaday world ; and being somewhat of a geneal- 
ogist at heart, he would, if he could, construct his 
family tree with roots striking deep into the re- 
motest past, not altogether from reasons of family 
pride but because he finds here a panorama of 
bygone days that pictures life itself. 

There is, to be sure, in all this nothing sugges- 
tive of the practical or materialistic; but as the 
passing years awaken State and local pride, popu- 
lar interest in such matters is almost certain to 
increase. In Iowa, long called the garden spot of 
the Mississippi Valley, historians have not yet 
followed all the streams of native-born Americans 
and of foreigners that have poured into its fertile 
fields: no one has fully told of the expansion of 
the American people from the Mississippi River 
westward to the Missouri. Much remains to be 
done before the Iowa chapter in that remarkable 



10 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 

romance of imniigration and settlement, begun 
less than ninety jeavs ago, can be called complete. 

For more than a century and a half after its 
discovery, the Iowa country continued to be little 
more than the home and the hamit of a few thou- 
sand Indians. To this wilderness primeval, white 
men — French, British, and later Americans — 
had resorted to trade with the native inhabitants ; 
some had come to explore the prairies and valleys ; 
and just a few had established homes in the 
neighborhood of Keokuk. The real invasion and 
occupation of the Iowa country, however, did not 
begin until the government of the United States 
opened wide the gates to immigration in the month 
of June, 1833. 

The march of the frontier of civilization from 
the Mississippi River westward and from the 
State of Missouri northward forms the Iowa 
chapter in the fascinating story of the expansion 
of the American people across the continent. By 
what means and agencies the vast domain acquired 
from the Red Men was eventually placed in the 
hands of settlers, who the original grantees of land 
patents were, and whence the pioneers came — 
these are some of the questions to which the future 
historian of Iowa must find answers. 

The two studies ]3resented in the following 
pages are designed as contributions to the larger 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE 11 

task. The first treats in a more or less general 
way of the British element in the population of 
the Commonwealth of Iowa; and the author be- 
lieves it should inspire those who would like to 
have a more detailed and intimate view of the 
subject with the possibility of further historical 
investigation in that field. The second study re- 
lates to the interesting episode of the coming of 
several himdreds of Britishers to that portion of 
Iowa which was the last to be occupied by home- 
seekers. This part relates largely to northwestern 
Iowa though settlements were also made in 
Minnesota. 

Nine years ago the author began gathering in- 
formation on the British invasion of northwestern 
Iowa, but not until the summer of 1921 could time 
be found to finish for the press what other activ- 
ities had so long delayed. In the pursuit of his 
task the writer sought and obtained help from 
many sources, and acknowledgements are due Mr. 
C. W. Pitts of Alton; Mr. Ed Dalton, Judge C. C. 
Bradley, and Mr. Adair G. Colpoys of Le Mars; 
and Mr. S. R. Watkins of Chicago, Illinois. 
Especial thanks are due Mr. James C. Gillespie, 
publisher of The Le Mars Sentinel, for permission 
to use the files of old newspapers in his possession. 
Without the frequent quotation of "scoops" and 
gossipy news items from those volumes the author 
feels that contemporaneous American interest in 



12 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 

the ''colony" centering about Le Mars could never 
have been fully grasped. 

The author is grateful also to Mr. John W. Pro- 
bert, manager of Close Brothers and Company of 
Chicago, for an outline sketch of the general his- 
tory of the firm and corporation with which he has 
been connected almost from the beginning. Mr. 
Probert's account, though based on memory, tal- 
lies closely with the facts as acquired from other 
sources. In answer to an inquiry after the books 
of accoimt of the early years of the firm in Iowa, 
Mr. Probert replied that the records were all gone 
by now. Consequently, the author can not vouch 
for the accuracy of statements about the extent of 
the company's operations, derived as they are 
from contemporaneous newspaper announcements. 
Authentic information on the operations of a typi- 
cal land company in that part of the Iowa wilder- 
ness which was the last to be brought under the 
dominion of man would have been especially valu- 
able because, so far as the author knows, no such 
matters have yet been made the subject of in- 
vestigation and permanent record in Iowa and 
perhaps not in any other part of the Middle West. 
In passing, one can not help but regret that valu- 
able materials on the history of the settlement of 
the State such as the books of account of land 
companies are being lost or destroyed. 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE 13 

In conclusion, the author wishes to acknowledge 
the encouragement received from Professor Benj. 
F. Shambaugh and' the assistance rendered by 
William B. Close, Esq., the founder of the British 
** colony", who has for many years been living in 
England. His excellent pamphlet on farming in 
northwestern Iowa, published in 1880, contains a 
great amount of indispensable material; and his 
letters from a London hospital, in the autunm of 
1921, when he was recovering at the age of nearly 
seventy from the effects of an operation and a bad 
attack of influenza, furnished many facts not 
otherwise discoverable. Mr. Close stated that al- 
though it seemed rather strange to him that so 
much interest should be taken in his old settlement 
he was glad to aid in ever}^ way. To Mr. Henry 
H. Drake, an old Oxonian and for forty years a 
resident of northwestern Iowa, the author is great- 
ly indebted for his kindness in helping to round 
out the story in many respects. 

Jacob Van der Zee 

The State University of Iowa 
Iowa City Iowa 



PART I 
BRITISH EMIGRANTS IN IOWA 



I 

POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 

Until the year 1850 English-speaking but native- 
born Americans overwhelmingly predominated in 
the flow of immigration to the settled portions of 
Iowa. Hailing from Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Penn- 
sylvania, New York, Kentucky, Tennessee, the 
Carolinas, and the New England States, they were 
the descendants of the racial stocks that had 
originally peopled the Atlantic seaboard areas.^ 
Their names for the most part bore witness to an 
English ancestry, but many of the Iowa pioneers 
could not have concealed a different extraction — 
such as Scotch, Irish, Dutch, German, Moravian, 
Swedish, and French. They were, indeed, the off- 
shoots of all the strains represented in the popula- 
tion of the older States. 

JOHN^ B. NEWHALL 

In the early forties, when the British public 
was being showered with journals, travels, letters, 
and notes relating to America — all too frequently 
prepared by superficial observers — there ap- 
peared upon the lecture platform in various parts 

17 



18 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

of England, the home of his ancestors, a man who 
brought his hearers first-hand information of the 
American frontier and of the social and economic 
condition of its people. He spoke not from books, 
nor did he draw upon imagination for romance 
or distorted pictures of that vast, boundless, open 
country on the western shore of the Mississippi. 
On the contrary, he came before his listeners as a 
witness of the things his eyes had seen in that 
primeval wilderness. 

In 1834, the second year of Iowa pioneering, 
John B. Newhall had joined the rush of emigrants 
to the Iowa country, and so he could make the 
proud boast that he was one of the first to lay 
eyes upon the prairies blooming there in solitude. 
In 1841 he had written a book on lowa,^ and hav- 
ing made his home in this inviting region he could 
truthfully say to the English people in 1844: 

I participated in rearing the first land marks of a 
young and rising state — new cities have sprung up 
before me — I have witnessed the great work of civili- 
zation in all its various stages, from the lone cabin 
of the frontier settler, to a happy and intelligent 
population of 170,000 souls!' 

At Birmingham, Liverpool, London, and other 
cities he preached the utility of emigration.* Ap- 
palled by the ugliness and wretchedness of life in 
those crowded centers in contrast with the easy 
circumstances of the same class of people in 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 19 

America and animated by a sincere desire to pro- 
mote the happiness of his fellow men, Newhall in 
1844 published a handbook and guide for pro- 
spective British emigrants. Englishmen naturally 
questioned his motives and jumped to the con- 
clusion that he was a speculator or land agent — 
"as though it were impossible, in the Nineteenth 
Century, for a man to be actuated by a Spirit of 
Philanthropy, of humanity and love." 

Newhall found it necessary, therefore, to assure 
his readers that nothing could be further from the 
truth than that he was mercenary : he asked them 
to believe that there was ''a loftier purpose to live 
for, than bowing to the shrine of Mammon." And, 
despite their prejudices against the United States, 
he invited their attention to the claims of Illinois, 
Wisconsin, and Iowa, especially the latter two, 
*' possessed of a Soil miri vailed in the variety and 
excellence of their productions, and rapidly set- 
tling, by a people, who are bound to the Anglo- 
Saxon race by the indissoluble ties of kindred, 
religion, and above all of Language." 

To the British agriculturalist as well as to the 
industrious artisan, merchant, capitalist, trader, 
and day laborer, he pointed out all the advantages 
of the New West, especially describing the Terri- 
tory of Iowa: the face of the country, soil, prod- 
ucts, timber and woodland, rivers, prairies, cli- 



20 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

mate, and seasons, public lands and land offices, 
the best fields for settlement, the average prices 
of articles of family consumption, the average 
prices of cows, horses, sheep, and necessary farm 
implements, the principal towns, and the moral 
and social character of the people. Furthermore, 
Newhall gave explicit instructions about the long 
voyage across the Atlantic, the choice of ship pro- 
visions, and routes to the American interior. 

These matters constituted the sort of informa- 
tion then required — particularly by the emigrant 
societies which had sprung up in many parts of the 
mother country. Of that movement so silently 
but rapidly spreading through English shires, 
Newhall recorded his conviction that ''associative 
Emigration is the true principle to work upon, it 
will do more to mitigate the woes of our common 
humanity, than the numberless political agitations 
of the day; it will effectually strip emigration of 
the miseries and hardships that have so frequently 
attended the isolated wanderer. "° 

Most interesting was Newhall's answer to the 
Englishman's question whether he could succeed 
with $500 in his pocket. He did not hesitate to 
say that the industrious and prudent man could 
lay the foundation of a handsome property with 
such a sum : for less than $400 the emigrant could 
be comfortably settled upon an eighty-acre tract 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 21 

supplied with a good house, yoke of oxen, horse, 
cow, twelve sheep, poultrj^, pig, wagon, plough, 
harrow, seed, and thirty weeks provisions until a 
small crop was raised for subsistence. To quote 
his exact words: *'And if you do not happen to 
have a 'Home sick Wife,' I can see no reason why, 
with ordinary Good Luck, blessed with patience 
and perseverance, you should not prosper equal 
to your utmost expectations." 

Thus established and with $100 left over, the 
British emigrant was warned not to let the surplus 
ooze away. A capital error generally made by 
emigrants was to spend their last dollar on land 
at the outset, thus dooming themselves to several 
years of up-hill work and perhaps discourage- 
ment. Another piece of Newhall's advice reads: 
*'If you have £500, purchase 320 acres, a half sec- 
tion; cultivate it well, load your own flat boats 
with your own produce, take it to New Orleans, 
and realize a handsome return, without having it 
wasted away by the commissions of the Mer- 
chant."^ 

Too many English people, in those days when 
hunger led to the repeal of the Corn Laws, im- 
agined that setting foot upon American soil would 
mark the end of all their sorrows; whereas in 
reality arrival in the New World too frequently 
only aggravated their woes. For months the news- 



22 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

papers of England were filled with accounts of the 
return home of hundreds of disillusioned emi- 
grants who brought back doleful stories of their 
experience in New York and other Atlantic ports. 
These disappointed ones became a stumbling-block 
to others who heartily yearned to improve their 
forlorn condition. Lest such destitute, dis- 
heartened persons should become a criterion of 
the wisdom of emigration to the Valley of the 
Mississippi, Newhall declared: 

Can we expect men to be benefitted, who rush head- 
long and blindly to America, without any fixed object, 
or ultimate aims, either of occupation or place of 
abode? .... I am willing to venture the assertion, 
that America possesses all the advantages, and in- 
ducements for the industrious, persevering and frugal 
Emigrant, now that it ever has from the day of its 
first discovery. But those advantages are not to be 
found '* picked up" on the pavements of every Atlantic 
city .... It is a mistaken notion, if people suppose 
the hogs run about the streets there, already roasted, 
with a fork stuck in their backs, crying come "Come, 
Eat me." Here has been one great cause of failure 
and disappointment.^ 

Newhall also cautioned Englishmen against the 
''runners" at the ports, a set of harpies who 
fleeced and robbed emigrants of their money at 
every opportunity; he begged them not to lose 
sight of the fact that while hundreds had returned 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 23 

home, thousands had remained in America and 
were doing well ; and he emphatically declared that 
if they did not have sufficient nerve to endure pri- 
vations for a few months in Iowa, they had better 
never leave their homes, for success would not 
crown their efforts.* 

ALICE MANN" 

Before the era of railroad building in Iowa, the 
State had been introduced to the people of the 
United States not only through the newspapers of 
the time but also through tourist handbooks and 
emigrant guides, of which a goodly number had 
been placed on sale before the Civil War. That 
some of these descriptive sketches, prepared pri- 
marily for American consumption, found their 
way to the British Isles there is little reason to 
doubt; but the information which Britishers ac- 
quired on the general subject of emigration was 
obtained more because they sought it than because 
Americans brought it to them. 

For a considerable time the United States had 
been the most favored field of emigration in Great 
Britain, not even Canada and Australia excepted. 
The British public had been placed in more or less 
intimate touch with the northern portion of the 
Union as the best suited for immigration: by the 
year 1850 several gentlemen had written books 



24 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

based on tours of the West or residence in Amer- 
ica, and such testimony was eagerly sought because 
people believed it to be unprejudiced and im- 
partial. Eventually, Alice Maim, a printer of 
Leeds, took the results of their practical observa- 
tion and experience along with Newhall's instruc- 
tive little books (to which her only objection was 
''that they are rather flowery") and out of such 
materials wove a compact guide which went 
through several editions.^ Having compiled such 
information mainly for the working and industrial 
classes, Miss Mann clearly described conditions in 
the mother country" in the following terms: 

Emigration must continue to he a subject of ever- 
increasing interest to the British people. Hemmed 
in as we are by the sea in all directions — the greater 
part of the land in our own country monopolized by 
the high aristocratic families — with a population 
steadily increasing in the face of diminished demand 
for labour in consequence of the ever-increasing pro- 
ductions of our mechanical powers, — the desire to 
emigrate to new and virgin soils, where every man 
may, with comparatively little difficulty, become an 
independent landowner, — cannot fail to extend, with 
the increase of information as to the extraordinary 
capabilities which the United States as well as the 
British Colonies, offer to the free labourers of this 
and all other countries of the Old World." 

But these foreign lands were a well spring of 
hope also to the heads of middle class families who 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 25 

found it increasingly difficult to maintain their 
households respectably and to establish their chil- 
dren in overstocked business or professional 
careers. To quote Miss Mann's words: 

Competition for subsistence is every day growing 
more keen; and the anxious parent is puzzled what 
to do with his rising sons and daughters. One year 
the manufacturing class complains of distress, and 
another year the agricultural class. Both classes are 
alike diligent, anxious to work, and to work hard pro- 
vided the gains of their labour promise to maintain 
them decently. But often their labour is in vain, and 
they feel as if their place at Nature's Board were 
already occupied, and they must turn their eyes else- 
where.^^ 

From such intense competition at home indus- 
trious farmers, laborers, and mechanics were 
asked to look to the boundless, unoccupied lands 
where ''no man need suffer from want of the 
means of physical comfort; no fear need be felt 
as to the future of a family, no matter how numer- 
ous." Individuals who contemplated a change of 
scene were, however, properly cautioned in these 
words : 

Not that men have to work less diligently there than 
they do at home. By no means ! It would be practis- 
ing a gross deception, w^ere we to inculcate that any 
man could thrive in the States or in the Colonies, 
without the practice of steady, persistent, daily in- 
dustry. The idle and the drone will be a poor man 



26 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

there, as he will be at home. He is a cumberer of 
the ground everywhere. But let a man work with a 
will, let his labour be directed by even the most or- 
dinary share of intelligence, and then we say he has 
a prospect of success and prosperity before him in 
these new lands, such as but rarely falls to his lot in 
this old and labour-stocked quarter of the globe. He 
has to submit to inconvenience and perhaps distress, 
in leaving his o^v^l native land, and voyaging his way 
across the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean. Many dear ties 
have to be severed; but he thinks of the promised 
land before him, and looks forward with hope to the 
inheritance he is to bequeath to his children.^^ 

To the wide-awake, industrious Englishman who 
regarded economic conditions at home without a 
sign of hope, Miss Mann declared, many regions 
of the earth still unpeopled and American States 
like Iowa still waiting for settlers beckoned with 
positive assurance.^* Such a man, fortified by 
steadiness, resolution, and a stout heart, need not 
hesitate to venture out on the emigrant's career 
— he could make up his mind to ''rough it" for 
several years ''before he can settle quietly down 
under his vine and fig-tree, and gather in their 
fruits". In Iowa, which was the Far West of that 
day, the thriving towns of Burlington, Dubuque, 
Davenport, Fort Madison, Iowa City, and Bloom- 
ington (now Muscatine) were commended as pre- 
senting excellent opportunity for skilled labor. 
Miss Mann's delineation of the face of the Iowa 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 27 

country also carried hope to those who wanted 
better returns from agriculture. Her attractive 
statement reads as follows : 

The State of Iowa, in the picturesque beauty of its 
scenery, and the richness of its verdure, much re- 
sembles the finest portions of the south of England 
counties; though, in native richness and fertility, it 
far surpasses any portion of this country. Here and 
there it is partially wooded, somewhat like a gentle- 
man's park in this country, being moderately undulat- 
ing, and no where, in the southern part of the State, 
rising into hills or mountains. All is green and cultiv- 
able. On the margins of the rivers there are occasional 
ranges of "bluffs," intersected by ravines.^^ 

The prairies, climate, productions, crops, timber, 
seasons, and other matters of interest were like- 
wise briefly touched upon. Indeed, an Englishman 
by the name of Rubio who had written a book on 
his rambles in the United States was quoted as 
speaking in the highest terms only of Iowa ^' which 
stands A 1 for emigrants, in his estimation". De- 
clared Miss Mann: 

We can imagine few conditions of life more favour- 
able to the enjoyment of earthly happiness than that 
of a settler on a rich piece of land in Ohio, Illinois, 
or Iowa : he is in the midst of plenty — the land teems 
with abundance — labour is never without its reward 
— and its fruits are all the labourer's own. He may 
not be rich in gold or silver coin; but if the land he 
tills be his ow^n, and that land produces more than 



28 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

sufficient for his own wants and the w^ants of all his 
household, has he not here the elements of the most 
substantial happiness? Let him take courage, then, 
and struggle onward." 

People who showed the white feather, "Miss 
Nancy" emigrants who returned to England after 
a tr}^ at the New World, were held up as dismal 
illustrations of the sort of stuff that could not 
succeed anywhere. 

GEORGE SHEPPARD AND THE CLINTON COUNTY 
SETTLEMENTS 

During the winter of 1849 George Sheppard, an 
Englishman, delivered several lectures at Hull, 
England, extolling Iowa as a State where ''health, 
wealth and beauty are spread out in every direc- 
tion". So forceful w^as his presentation of the 
advantages of emigration to America that a society 
was organized for the purchase of a tract of land, 
and Mr. Sheppard was engaged to help make the 
selection of a site. 

On May 15, 1850, the emigrants sailed from 
Liverpool on the ship ''Columbus" and reached 
New York after a six weeks' voyage. Upon ar- 
riving at Davenport, Iowa, the}^ made arrange- 
ments with Cook and Sargent (land agents and 
bankers), to assist them in their undertaking. On 
the stage route to Dubuque, at a place nine or ten 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 29 

miles northwest of De Witt — the seat of govern- 
ment in Clinton Comity and then a small town 
with a log cabin tavern — the emigrants purchased 
about two thousand acres of oak timber and 
prairie land and divided it according to the sums 
of money each had invested in the enterprise. Up- 
on a hill which commanded a beautiful view east, 
south, and west, they laid out forty acres in one- 
acre lots and called the village Wei ton. High 
hopes were naturally entertained of the future of 
this i^lace, situated on the military and mail road 
between Davenport and Dubuque. Writing to 
friends in England in the summer of 1850, George 
Sheppard noted" that land speculators were watch- 
ing the colonists' movements, and he prophesied 
''that within twelve months from this not an acre 
will be purchasable near us except at double the 
government price. ' '^^ 

A number of buildings rose on the spot which 
these people had chosen — hotel, shops, stores, and 
dwellings. For a time the colony flourished; but 
its members having been trained as mechanics and 
artisans — tailors, bookbinders, painters, and 
others — found pioneer life unattractive, and so 
they forsook their farms and returned to their 
trades, scattering to other towns throughout the 
country. This village which died out is still known 
as "Old Welton". The name is also perpetuated 



30 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

in another village not far to the south and in the 
township where it lay, "a monument to the designs 
of its founders." 

Of a different character weve the English fam- 
ilies which began to settle in Eden and Center 
townships w^est of the town of Camanche in the 
same county. Nearly all are said to have come 
from the village of Killingham, Lincolnshire, Eng- 
land. Bringing capital with them, they bought out 
the pioneers of the I'egion and in 1879 were re- 
ported as largeh^ engaged in stock raising, thrifty 
and enterprising, with broad fields and fine farm- 
houses. In their vicinity the Chicago and North- 
western Railroad selected a site for a station ; and 
when the town-planners were debating a name for 
the place, the superintendent of construction, 
standing by a pile of rails and noting the words 
**Low Moor, England" stamped upon them, suc- 
ceeded in securing the adoption of that name. 
Since then Englishmen have always been found in 
this neighborhood.^^ 

During these years William Lake, an English- 
man by birth and president of St. George's Bene- 
volent Association of Clinton, Iowa, interested 
himself in immigration to such an extent that he 
was in communication with the British Working 
Men's Association. He declared his belief that if 
the horribly cruel and unjust quarantine regula- 



POINTING THE WAY TO IOWA 31 

tions of the port of New York were improved, 
immigration into the United States could be 
doubled.'^ 



II 

STATE ENCOURAGEMENT OF 
IMMIGRATION 

What effect Newhall had in England there is no 
wa}^ to show ; and the same may be said of the in- 
fluence of other writers.''*' There is, however, suf- 
ficient evidence to proA^e that as early as 1850, 
when the United States census first began to re- 
cord the nativity of the nation's inhabitants and 
when the occupation of the vvoods and prairies of 
Iowa had been going on for twenty years, settlers 
of British birth had already appeared upon the 
American frontier. Of the 192,214 people in Iowa 
at that time, it appears that 20,969 were born in 
foreign countries; and of these more than half 
were British — 4885 Irish, 3785 English, 1756 
British-Americans, and 712 Scotch.'' Further- 
more, it is a noteworthy fact that the people of 
British birth exceeded those of German origin not 
only in 1850 but also in every census year for 
three decades thereafter. 

No direct effort (other than by means of such 
booklets as those written by John B. Newhall and 
Alice Mann) seems to have been made before 1860 

32 



ENCOURAGEMENT OF IMMIGRATION 33 

to induce British people to leave their homes and 
come to Iowa. The Dubuque Emigrant Associa- 
tion, organized in 1858, may have brought its in- 
fluence to bear on emigrants after their arrival at 
Castle Garden in New York City, but it did not 
directly encourage emigration from the British 
Isles, though a pamphlet'" intended for people in 
the eastern States very likely fell into the hands 
of foreigners as well. Not until observing lowans 
awoke to the fact that the States of Minnesota and 
Wisconsin were actively engaged in luring emi- 
grants within their borders did Iowa legislators 
provide for a commissioner of immigration in 
New York City."^ At his office there during the 
years 1860 and 1861 he imparted information and 
distributed literature to all who came ; but before 
his retirement he pointed out the futility of ap- 
proaching foreigners whose final destination in 
America was generally determined previous to 
their sailing from Europe. During the Civil War 
and the reconstruction period following, the gov- 
ernment of Iowa did practically nothing to en- 
courage immigration to the State. 

Competitive publicity measures on the part of 
neighbormg States, however, again served to shake 
the Iowa legislature out of its persistent indiffer- 
ence to the subject. Created by law in 1870, the 
Iowa State Board of Immigration began its duties 



34 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

by printing and distributing small circulars and 
sending out newspaper notices inviting corre- 
spondence from persons who desired information 
about settling in Iowa. A. R. Fulton, secretary 
of the Board, prepared for publication in various 
languages a pamphlet on the agricultural, mmeral, 
and other resources of the State.^* Various rail- 
road companies and the Hamburg Steamship Line 
were insti^umental in carrying such advertising 
matter to Europe at very slight cost to the Board. 
Grovernor Merrill's letter to the Workingmen's 
Emigrant Association of London was also widely 
distributed among the branches in the cities and 
towns of England, Scotland, and Wales. The 
Board commissioned Edward T. Edginton of 
Lucas County, Rev. Alexander King of Ireland, 
and Alexander A. Wise of London to disseminate 
information throughout the British Isles. Both 
King and Wise as resident agents were after- 
wards highly praised for their valuable services in 
attracting attention to Iowa, Mr. King having con- 
tributed many ably written articles to leading 
religious and secular journals in his country.-^ 

Because four of the members of the State Board 
of Immigration of 1870-1871 were foreign-born 
and represented the Dutch, the German, and the 
Scandinavian elements in the population of Iowa, 
the Irish of Iowa expressed considerable dissatis- 



ENCOURAGEMENT OF IMMIGRATION 35 

faction through the Roman Catholic clergy of the 
diocese of Dubuque. To the Hon. Richard O 'Gor- 
man of New York City they addressed a letter for 
the benefit of their fellow countrymen in Ireland 
on the subject of emigration. Furthermore, be- 
cause Governor Merrill, in alluding to the foreign- 
born people in the State, had omitted to mention 
the large Irish element, thirty-seven Irish clergy- 
men took him to task by asking whether their 
religion or politics or both were a barrier to recog- 
nition. Thousands of Irishmen, they declared, 
were prosperous, independent farmers in a State 
that was even then taking the lead in American 
agriculture. The clergy directed attention to the 
vast land holding of various railroad companies 
and the terms on which immigrants could still pur- 
chase farms ; they also showed the rapid spread of 
Catholicism in Iowa as another special advantage, 
and they offered to supply any further informa- 
tion on the subject so close to their hearts. In 
conclusion, they promised to appoint an agent to 
represent them at New Ybrk in the spring /of 
1871.'^ 

Immediately after his appointment, Edward T. 
Edginton left Chariton, Iowa : he arrived in Liver- 
pool on August 18, 1870. Here he at once opened 
an office ; but owing to the lateness of the emigra- 
tion season and the lack of printed matter adver- 



36 THE BEITISH IN IOWA 

tising Iowa he could do little except to collect the 
names and addresses of persons who intended to 
emigrate in the coming spring. When the pam- 
phlets on Iowa did arrive, there were not nearly 
enough to supply all applicants. Mr. Edginton 
had a list of two thousand agents residing in all 
parts of the British Isles whom he also intended 
to furnish with an ample number of the State's 
booklets: his repeated requests for more and also 
for a cheaper document for wider distribution 
were not complied with because the State Board 
of Immigration had too little money at its disposal 
for such purposes. 

How many individuals Mr. Edginton induced to 
go to Iowa by his distribution of six thousand 
copies of the pamphlet, he could not state, as most 
of them booked their passage to America through 
local passenger agents; but he distributed pam- 
phlets and information to all who were interested 
in Liverpool, London, Manchester, Birmingham, 
Sheffield, Leeds, Lincoln, Leicester, Nottingham, 
Cheltenham, Gloucester, Hereford, Bristol, Neath, 
Swansea, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth, Dundee, 
Aberdeen, Inverness, Stirling, and other cities." 
He also inserted a short advertisement in a lead- 
ing religious paper and received over five hundred 
letters of inquiry.'^ 

In the report of his activities Mr. Edginton 



ENCOURAGEMENT OF IMMIGRATION 37 

suggested that the Iowa legislature make more 
liberal provision not only for printed matter but 
also for the pajanent of agents 'Svho should be 
constantly employed during the entire year in 
visiting and lecturing, in the agricultural districts, 
especially." If this were done, he had no doubt 
that the result would equal if not surpass the most 
sanguine expectations. Judging from the fact 
that the State of Iowa paid Edginton $121.25 for 
freight, postage, and wrappers on pamphlets and 
$150 as salar}^ during his seven months of service 
abroad, he was probably one of the agents who 
had been employed by the Board of Immigration 
to serve both the State and such railroad 
companies as had agreed to pay most of their 
salaries.""" 

The second State Board of Immigration ap- 
pointed for the years 1872 and 1873 also sought to 
reach British ears, like its predecessor, through 
Alexander A. Wise at London."*" How thoroughly 
he did his work, there is no report to show. Dur- 
ing the next six years, however, the State of Iowa 
did practically nothing to attract settlers to its 
huge unoccupied areas. 

Despite the operations of railroad and other 
agencies in the land markets at home and abroad, 
men like Governor John H. Gear realized that the 
State was not receiAdng a fair share of the im- 



38 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

migration which had been coming to the West. He 
informed the General Assembly that American 
consuls in Great Britain and Germany had notified 
him that there would be a very large emigration 
of most desirable people to the United States in 
1880.^^ Because this prediction had been *' corrob- 
orated by the public speeches of many of the lead- 
ing English statesmen, and by utterances of the 
influential press in discussing the agricultural con- 
ditions of their coimtry" and because neighboring 
States were openly bidding for such settlers, Gov- 
ernor Gear urged the State legislature of Iowa to 
enter *'the race for empire". Accordingly, for the 
last time in the history of the State, the General 
Assembly in 1880 appropriated $5000 annually for 
two years, $1200 being designated as the annual 
salary of a commissioner, the remainder to be ex- 
pended by him in showing 'Ho the people of the 
United States the natural advantages and resourc- 
es of the state of Iowa." George D. Perkins of 
Sioux City, who was appointed to the new posi- 
tion, at once amiounced that according to his in- 
terpretation of the law no part of the funds at his 
disposal could be spent in foreign countries.^^ 

The last reminder of the State's undertaking to 
lure trans- Atlantic emigrants to its vacant lands 
is a four-page pamphlet prepared in 1881 by J. 
Duehurst Shuttleworth of 45 Sunny Road, South- 



ENCOURAGEMENT OF IMMIGRATION 39 

port, England, who gave his representations added 
but apparently unauthorized weight by signing 
himself ^'Commissioner of Immigration for the 
State of Iowa". An English newspaper contained 
the following editorial mention or advertisement 
of Iowa and its self-styled commissioner: 

The State of Iowa invites the attention of Emigrants 
to the following facts: It is the first State in the 
amount of Indian Corn grown, in the number of pigs 
raised, and first in Wheat. For the Dairy low^a has 
no equal; at the World's Exposition in Philadelphia 
bearing off gold and silver medal award on Butter; 
in St. Louis, 1878, on Cheese; and again on Butter 
at the International Dairy Fair, New York, in De- 
cember, 1879. Iowa lies midway between Texas south 
and Canada on the north, and in belt of population, 
commerce and wealth. Canada exported, in 1877, 
13,659,949 pounds of Butter, and produced 25,000,000 
bushels of Wheat; low^a, the same year, exported 
27,262,724 pounds of Butter and produced 54,500,000 
bushels of Wheat. Ontario, Canada, had in 1875 of 
Horses, Cattle and Pigs, 9 to the square mile. The 
farmers of the State of Iowa, of whom a large number 
are from Great Britain, own of Horses, Cattle and 
Pigs, 5,236,482, or 95 to the square mile. Of the 
64,000,000 bushels of Corn received in Chicago last 
year, 29,709,340 bushels were from Iowa. By the 
laws of Iowa, any British subject, w^hether naturalized 
or residing in the United States or not, may exercise 
all the rights of a citizen in regard to buying, holding 
or the transfer of property.^^ 



40 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

A pamphlet entitled Iowa Resources and In- 
dustries was the last one prepared at State expense 
for home and investment seekers and was pub- 
lished in .1.885 by J. P. Bushnell, Commissioner of 
Immigration, with the endorsement of the State 
Executive Council. Though not issued for circula- 
tion in the British Isles, it undoubtedly served the 
general purpose of keeping Iowa before the eyes 
of English-speaking people everj^'here. The 
document seems to have been intended to fall into 
the hands of visitors to the World's Industrial and 
Cotton Centennial Exposition and to the North, 
Central and South American Exposition — both 
held at New Orleans. Iowa could not withhold a 
suitable display on both these occasions because 
a similar participation at the Philadelphia Cen- 
tennial Exposition in 1876 had served to attract 
both capital and immigrants to the State.^* 

Meanwhile the railroad companies whose trunk 
lines had been pushed westAvard at great expense 
had bent every energy to sell the thousands of 
acres of public domain granted to them by a gen- 
erous government: so long as these lands along 
their right of ways lay townless and unimproved 
or unused for agriculture or stock raising, the rail- 
roads had little more than a desert to tap. By 
purchase from these corporations and from home- 
steaders and preemptors, land companies had pro- 



ENCOURAGEMENT OF IMMIGRATION 41 

cured titles to vast bodies of land adjacent to the 
railroads. The agents of the railroads and the 
private land companies, therefore, left no stone 
unturned to unload their extensive holdings upon 
foreign immigrants and land-seekers from the 
older parts of the United States. In every possible 
way — by newspaper advertising, by pamphlets, 
and by agents in foreign lands — they sought to 
bring settlers to the territory tributary to their 
newly-built lines across lowa.^^ 

How much these private agencies exerted them- 
selves to persuade Americans and Europeans to 
purchase land in the State of Iowa can never be 
known until their books and records have been 
thoroughly searched for information of that char- 
acter. By the beginning of the last decade of the 
nineteenth century very little vacant or unsold 
land, it is believed, remained in the hands of rail- 
road grantees or large land companies in Iowa. 



Ill 

BRITISH ELEMENTS IN THE POPULA- 
TION OF IOWA 

THE IRISH 

Although every portion of the British Isles had 
contributed its quota of emigrants to the ''Eden 
of American agriculture", Ireland surpassed the 
other parts of the United Kingdom owing chiefly 
to a succession of famines. Beginning with only 
4885 in 1850, natives of the Emerald Isle in Iowa 
rapidly increased to 20,896 in 1856, to 28,072 in 
1860, to 40,124 in 1870, and reached their highest 
total of 44,061 in 1880. Although these Irish im- 
migrants were to be found in practically all the 
townships of all the counties of the State, they 
seem to have been attracted chiefly to the larger 
towns such as Dubuque, Clinton, Davenport, Bur- 
lington, Keokuk, Des ^loines. Cedar Rapids, and 
Council Bluffs. 

A list of the counties in which the Irish element 
attained its greatest numerical strength in 1880 
may be taken to indicate the localities to which 
the Irish have been most partial in their choice 
of homes. These counties, together with the num- 

42 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 



43 



ber of Irish-born residents, may be listed as 
follows:^' 



Dubuque 


3325 


Jackson 


946 


Delaware 


675 


Clinton 


2473 


Des Moines 


925 


Winneshiek 


673 


Scott 


1671 


Buchanan 


910 


Black Hawk 


660 


Allamakee 


1550 


Linn 


894 


Fayette 


628 


Polk 


1466 


Monroe 


800 


Crawford 


559 


POTTAWAT.* 


1382 


Webster 


784 


Howard 


547 


Lee 


1042 


Muscatine 


767 


Poweshiek 


531 


Jones 


962 


Iowa 


751 


Woodbury 


512 


Johnson 


952 


Wapello 


739 


Cedar 


472 


Clayton 


948 


Chickasaw 


701 


Union 


458 


* Pottawattamie 













Later census enumerations do not alter the fore- 
going list appreciably, although in 1885 Greene 
County appeared with 560 Irish-born settlers, all 
the others having suffered decreases except Polk, 
Pottawattamie, and Woodbury where the growth 
of Des Moines, Council Bluffs, and Sioux City 
account for a considerable increase. 

Since 1880 the sons and daughters of Old Erin 
resident in Iowa have shown a rapid falling off 
as evidenced by the following statistics : 42,524 in 
1885, 33,006 in 1895, 22,578 in 1905, 14,299 in 1915, 
and 10,686 in 1920. Death has thinned the ranks 
of the Irish immigrants of half a century ago, and 
their places have not been filled by fresh recruits 
from the old home-land; but their children and 
grandchildren constitute a numerous progeny, 



44 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Irish Catholic communities being found in most 
of the coimties of the State to-day." 

THE WELSH 

The Welsh contingent in Iowa's foreign-born 
population has always been relatively small. In 
1880 only 3031 natives of Wales were reported as 
residents of the State, being grouped with the 
English in the census returns for comities.^* In 
subsequent years they are separately reported in 
the records as follows: 3436 in 1885, 3439 in 1895, 
2621 in 1905, 2048 in 1915, and 1753 in 1920. Slight 
and almost negligible as their number was in com- 
parison with the State's total population, the 
Welsh have somewhat clannishly flocked to certain 
counties as is shown in the following figures i^" 

WELSH IMMIGRANTS 1885 1895 1905 1915 



Mahaska County 


406 


442 


236 


157 


Lucas County 


282 


49 


107 


68 


Iowa County 


250 


214 


146 


111 


Montgomery County 


200 


166 


95 


87 


Howard County 


185 


151 


133 


88 


Louisa County 


156 


164 


96 


69 


Johnson County 


144 


119 


77 


49 


Wapello County 


138 


230 


170 


99 


Polk County 


132 


153 


194 


237 


Jasper County 


58 


125 


115 


125 


Monroe County 


50 


319 


362 


256 


Appanoose County 


11 


121 


49 


61 


Further investi^ 


'•ation shows 


that 


in several of 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 45 

these counties Welshmen congregated in certain 
neighborhoods, as, for example, in Columbus City 
and Elm Gfrove townships in Louisa County where 
church services are still conducted in the mother 
tongue ; Des Moines, Garfield, and Harrison town- 
ships and the towns of Beacon and Oskaloosa in 
Mahaska County; the towns of Cleveland and 
Lucas in Lucas County w^here John Llewellyn 
Lewis, president of the United Mine Workers of 
America, was born of Welsh parents in 1880 ; Hil- 
ton and Troy townships and Williamsburg in low^a 
County; Forest City in Howard County; Union 
Township in Johnson Comity; Kirkville and 
Ottumwa in Wapello County; Lincoln Township 
with the village of Wales in Montgomery County ; 
Des Moines in Polk County ; Poweshiek Township 
in Jasper County." Most of the Welsh in low^a 
to-day are engaged as miners in the coal fields; 
but wherever they are, their eisteddfods or annual 
singing contests and their c^Tnanfa or church con- 
ventions have survived the transplanting of these 
folk from their tiny fatherland. The Y DrycJi, a 
newspaper published at Utica, New York, has 
many readers among the Welshmen of Iowa. 

THE CANADIANS 

Not inconsiderable has been the flow of British- 
Americans, chiefly Canadians, to the low^a country. 



46 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Census totals in every year except 1915 ranked 
them next to the Engiish-born inhabitants of the 
Hawkeye State: 1756 in 1850, 6133 in 1856, 8313 
in 1860, 17,907 in 1870, 19,451 in 1880, 19,087 in 
1885, 17,882 in 1895, 14,306 in 1905, 10,980 in 1915, 
and 8929 in 1920. Being already Americanized, 
in the sense that their environment in Canada 
differed very little from that in the United 
States, they could easily adapt themselves to Iowa 
conditions: consequently these newcomers scat- 
tered to every nook and corner of the State. Tak- 
ing the figures for 1880 and 1885 as a criterion and 
comparing them with more recent returns, Canadi- 
ans have always been most numerous in the follow- 
ing counties:*^ 



CANADIANS 


1880 


1885 




1880 


1885 


Clinton 


821 


617 


Fayette 


451 


330 


Pottawattamie 


555 


542 


Jackson 


427 


310 


Woodbury 


538 


956 


Linn 


408 


417 


Grundy 


533 


234 


Buchanan 


390 


247 


Winneshiek 


510 


401 


Cerro Gordo 


377 


337 


Black Hawk 


507 


419 


Marshall 


368 


373 


Floyd 


459 


391 


Polk 


353 


408 


Tama 


457 


263 


Butler 


349 


269 


Scott 


340 


247 


Cherokee 


321 


306 


Jones 


328 


220 


Delaware 


318 


252 


Plymouth 


326 


549 


Dubuque 


314 


284 



Cedar Rapids, Clinton, Council Bluffs, Daven- 
port, Des Moines, Dubuque, Le Mars, Fort Dodge, 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 47 

and Sioux City were the principal British- Amer- 
ican centers as late as 1895 ; and by the year 1915 
the relative distribution in the counties above 
named had not appreciably changed/'^ It is in- 
teresting to note in this connection that as cheap 
Iowa lands were invaded by British subjects from 
the region north of the Great Lakes, so in more 
recent years Canada's agricultural provinces of 
Alberta and Saskatchewan were largely occupied 
by thousands of young farmers from the Hawk- 
eye State. Indeed, to that exodus was chiefly as- 
cribed the decline of Iowa's population during the 
first decade of the twentieth century; and if the 
facts were fully known, they would probably show 
that Canada has more than made good earlier 
losses to Iowa. 

THE SCOTCH 

Although the stream of Irish immigration be- 
gan to diminish in volume after 1880, the high- 
water mark of Scotch immigration to Iowa was 
not reached until five years later as shown by the 
following figures : 712 in 1850, 2169 in 1856, 2895 
in 1860, 5248 in 1870, 6885 in 1880, and 7993 in 
1885. Where the natives of Scotland settled in 
Iowa can be quite accurately determined from the 
census returns for the most t}T)ical years. Like 
the Irish they spread to all the ninety-nine coun- 



48 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ties, but consciously or unconsciously they favored 

a few as will be seen by the figures in the table." 

SCOTCH 1880 1885 1880 1885 

Boone 303 379 Linn 181 218 

Tama 302 224 Poweshiek 169 146 

Pottawattamie 207 304 Keokuk 117 408 

Webster 188 203 Jasper 141 191 

Polk 185 215 Greene 96 166 

Scott 181 142 Dubuque 126 150 

Despite the fact that old Scotch settlers have 
been passing away in the past three decades, the 
comparative ranking of the counties was about 
the same in 1915, although Monroe and Woodbury 
counties had received considerable accessions. Al- 
ways rather thinly distributed over the State, the 
canny Scots have nevertheless gathered to a cer- 
tain extent in such towns and cities as Boonesboro, 
Moingona, and Angus, Traer, Des Moines, Daven- 
port, Council Bluffs, Dubuque, What Cheer, and 
Sioux City.''* What Cheer owes its name to the 
exclamation of a Scotchman when he discovered 
coal in the neighborhood. Like their Welsh 
countrymen, many have worked as colliers in Iowa 
mines. 

THE ENGLISH 

Although the number of English-born people 
reported in Iowa in any census year never equalled 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 49 

or exceeded that of the Irish until 1915 when both 
elements totaled 15,741 and 14,299 respectively, 
the English must not be thought to have made a 
poor showing as immigrants. On the contrary, 
they and their descendants constitute a respectable 
portion of the State's population at the present 
time. The crest of the English wave struck Iowa 
five years later than did that of the Irish, as may 
be gathered from the following returns: 3785 in 
1850, 8942 in 1856, 11,522 in 1860, 16,660 in 1870, 
22,519 in 1880, and 25,974 in 1885. 

These immigrants like other Britishers settled 
most thickly in certain portions of the State, but 
this result was not necessarily due to conscious 
selection on their part. In 1895 Des Moines, 
Dubuque, Sioux City, Council Bluffs, Davenport, 
Clinton, What Cheer, Cedar Rapids, Burlington, 
Ottumwa, Mystic, Oskaloosa, and Le Mars led in 
the number of English-born inhabitants, thus help- 
ing to explain the totals for counties in earlier and 
later census years as well. In 1915 the English- 
born residents of Iowa were dwelling in much the 
same places as before, except that several coal- 
mining communities had come to be prominent 
centers since 1890. Statistics for about one-fourth 
of the counties of Iowa for the census years of 
1880, 1885, 1895, and 1915 show that in most local- 
ities there has been a marked decrease in the num- 



50 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ber of English-born residents in Iowa. The 
figures are as follows:*^ 

ENGUSH IMMIGRANTS 1880 1885 1895 1915 



Pottawattamie County 


1121 


1157 




402 


Dubuque County 


1062 


980 




478 


Clinton County 


892 


833 




351 


Polk County 


872 


1128 




1472 


Mahaska County 


669 


725 




271 


Scott County 


611 


490 




380 


Delaware County 


583 


508 




109 


Lucas County 


493 


516 




188 


Johnson County 


484 


305 




133 


Des Moines County 


462 


420 




178 


Black Hawk County 


458 


437 




513 


Linn County 


429 


479 




463 


Fayette County 


412 


374 




186 


Plymouth County 


365 


601 




204 


Boone County 


331 


656 




250 


Keokuk County 


178 


652 




137 


Woodbury County 


230 


636 




845 


Greene County 


280 


488 




124 


Monroe County 


224 


174 


449 


560 


Jasper County 


387 


365 


441 


365 


Butler County 


278 


217 


182 


350 


Appanoose County 


137 


219 


687 


331 


Wapello County 


293 


352 


502 


321 


Cerro Gordo County 


335 


340 


376 


311 



DECREASE OF THE BRITISH ELEMENT 

Judging from State and Federal census totals, 
natives of Canada and Ireland practically ceased 
emigrating to Iowa by the year 1880; natives of 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 51 

Scotland and England by the year 1885; and 
Welshmen by the year 1895. Since then their 
numbers have gradually decreased: death has 
taken its toll among the oldest of them and new- 
comers from across the sea have not arrived in 
sufficient force to keep the British element con- 
stant in the population of the State. How rapidly 
the pure Scotch and English strains have van- 
ished is clear from the records which show that the 
number in 1920 was only about half that in 1885: 
NATIONALITY 1885 1895 1905 1915 1920 

Scotch 7,993 7,037 5,693 4,947 3,967 

English 25,974 23,411 18,263 15,741 13,036 

TOTAL BRITISH-BORN CONTRIBUTION TO IOWA 

How many Britishers have at different times 
found homes in Iowa, not even the census figures 
can adequately reveal. Some of them came and 
died in the State before the census enumerators 
could record their presence; some resided in the 
State a few years and moved on without being 
counted in the census years. A rough estimate of 
the British contribution to Iowa for the past 
eighty years may be based on the combined totals 
of the years 1885 and 1915 which probably repre- 
sent two generations of foreign-born Irish, Cana- 
dians, Welsh, Scotch, and English : approximately 
150,000 emigrants from the British Isles and 



52 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

British possessions have helped to swell the popu- 
lation of the State at various times. 

In conclusion it is interesting to observe how 
this British contribution has compared with other 
foreign-born elements in the Iowa museum of 
human stocks and races. It is a mistake to assume 
that because the Germans and the Scandinavians 
have loomed large in the bulk of European immi- 
grants in Iowa during the past thirty years they 
have always preponderated. It is worth noting 
that all census returns on nativity from 1850 to 
1880 show that the combined total of Irish, Cana- 
dians, Welsh, Scotch, and English exceeded that 
of any other nationality. Since then, however, 
German-born immigrants have easily ranked first 
in number. Moreover, it was not until 1905 that 
Swedes and Norwegians stood next to the Ger- 
mans, Irish-born and English-born inhabitants 
ranking fourth and fifth. Even in the year 1915 
the entire British-born element did not compare 
unfavorably with the North Europeans as 
evidenced in the following figures :*^ 

Germans 88,450 English 15,741 

Swedes 25,683 Irish 14,299 

Norwegians 20,239 British Americans 11,080 

Danes 18,955 Scotch 4,947 

The clannishness so characteristic of German, 
Scandinavian, Dutch, and Bohemian settlements 



BRITISH ELEMENTS IN POPULATION 53 

ill Iowa has not been duplicated by the British- 
born to any noticeable extent : the latter have al- 
ways been more thinly diffused throughout the 
State,*' perhaps because the language difficulty 
never seriously differentiated them from their 
English-speaking American neighbors. The prob- 
lem of adjustment and adaptation to the New 
World quite naturally possessed no terrors ifor 
those who had no linguistic handicap to overcome, 
whereas in the case of all other foreigners the 
same difficulty very much retarded the process of 
Americanization. Whether Teutonic peoples have 
been on the whole a more welcome addition to the 
body politic of Iowa than the British, students 
of ethnology will have no easy task to prove. How- 
ever that may be, the industrious and self-respect- 
ing descendants of all foreign-born immigrants 
who sought and found a livelihood within the 
borders of the State have no reason to lament their 
lineage. On the contrarj^ their foreign ancestry 
should spur them on to create in Iowa, with its 
wonderful natural resources, a State and a society 
superior to any that their trans-Atlantic fore- 
fathers knew ; for after all the real wealth of every 
State is its people. 



PART II 

BRITISH INVASION OF NORTHWESTERN 

IOWA 



55 



I 

THE CLOSE BROTHERS 

Only once in the history of the University of 
Cambridge (England) have three brothers at- 
tained the distinction of making the varsity crew,*^ 
and that was about fifty years ago. Eight times 
they rowed against Oxford in the annual races on 
the Thames. These celebrated oarsmen, two of 
whom were presidents of the Cambridge Univer- 
sity Boat Club, were John Brooks Close, James 
Brooks Close, and William Brooks Close. A 
fourth brother, Frederick Brooks Close, having 
elected not to go to Cambridge, joined a friend 
farming in the backwoods of the Alleghany Moun- 
tains in Virginia.''^ 

FIRST VISIT TO IOWA 

It was in the year 1876 that William B. Close 
received an invitation to bring to the United 
States a university four to compete in the cen- 
tennial regatta at Philadelphia. He persuaded 
some Trinity College men to make the journey. 
Upon their arrival in America in August, the 
visitors were given quarters in the middle of the 

57 



58 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Quaker city (not in the country as the Centennial 
Committee had promised), with the result that 
before the races took place all the young English- 
men came down with malarial fever, and con- 
sequently they failed to make much of a showing. 
What happened then may be told in Mr. Close's 
own words: 

Nevertheless, one day while practising and rowing 
a course, I found my slide in the boat became very 
stiff. I completed the course with the result that I 
bruised myself so badly that I could not sit down 
without the help of cushions. The crew went to Cape 
May for a Aveek-end; and while the other boys were 
out for a training walk on Sunday afternoon, being 
unable to join them for the reason above stated, I 
sat down on a vacant chair on the verandah and 
entered into conversation with a gentleman who I 
soon found out came from Quincy, Illinois — Mr. 
Daniel Paullin. He had a son and a daughter with 
him. In the course of conversation on that day and 
next week-end he told me how he had made his for- 
tune by buying lands in Illinois in the early sixties, 
which had grown very much more valuable, and stated 
that he was going to start his sons in Iowa in the 
same way as the same opportunity occurred. He in- 
vited me to go West to pay him a visit at Quincy, 
and volunteered to lead an expedition into Western 
Iowa. Accordingly, when I had recovered from this 
bad attack of malaria a couple of months after, to- 
gether with my brother Fred, who came from Virginia 
to join me, we made our way to Quincy, Illinois, and 



THE CLOSE BROTHERS 59 

shortly afterwards with one of his sons we went 
through Des Moines to some of the western counties, 
hired a buggy, and for about a week we traveled from 
village to village taking in the general topography of 
the country. On my return to Quincy I became en- 
gaged to Mr. Paullin's eldest daughter.^" 

THE PURCHASE OF IOWA LANDS 

Assured by Mr. PauUin that the West offered 
stronger inducements to a young man than any 
country across the water, the brothers returned 
eastward, William spending the winter in Eng- 
land; but in May, 1877, they were out in Iowa 
again. They looked carefully into the subject of 
land investments and in the end were fully con- 
vinced of the desirability and safety of putting 
part of their capital into lands."' During that 
year they also studied pioneer farming and stock 
raising in all their aspects, and then bought nearly 
three thousand acres at $3.50 per acre in the 
neighborhood of what is now the town of Ricketts 
in Crawford County.'" 

This purchase of land proved to be the first of 
a long series in northwestern Iowa, then the most 
sparsely settled portion of the State. Why the 
young men chose to begin operations there in 
preference to other parts of the New World was 
later very interestingly set forth by William B. 
Close in an English j)eriodical: 



60 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

WHien I left Cambridge several years ago I had 
already made up my mind that if I left England and 
engaged in stock raising and farming generally, it 
was to the North American continent I should go. 
No other part of the world, it seemed to me, offered 
the same advantages ; but the question as to what part 
of that continent to settle in, I thought it best to 
decide after 1 had taken an exploring trij) through 
Canada and the States. 

My sympathies naturally inclined me towards Can- 
ada, as being under the British flag, but dismissing 
from my mind all thoughts of settling in a country 
where "clearing" has to be done, and where the best 
portion of a man's life is spent in getting his farm 
fit for cultivation, I soon found that for stock raising 
and sheep farming Canada could not compete on 
equal terms with those States and territories where 
winters are shorter, and where maize or Indian corn 
is grown, in addition to swedes, turnips, peas, &c. Had 
I, however, intended to go in only for wheat growing, 
I should undoubtedly have chosen the Eed River 
valley, in Manitoba, but as I was more bent on stock 
raising, I turned my back on Canada and went to 
look up a brother who had a small stock farm in the 
baclrwoods of the Alleghany Mountains, in Western 
Old Virginia. I did not stay long there — good lands 
were scarce and dear — and although more than fifty 
miles from a railroad, were held at £14 to £16 per acre. 

Nor did I stay long in the eastern part of the State. 
Virginia is, as the Yankees would say, "played out," 
tobacco has exhausted the soil, and I w^as offered 
some fine-looking estates with large trees and grand 



THE CLOSE BROTHERS 61 

old mansions at a much less rate than good lands in 
the back woods. Also I formed a very bad opinion 
of the lower class of population; everywhere I went 
I saw far too much loafing about at the saloon doors, 
and the blacks would only work just sufficiently to 
keep themselves from actual starvation. So, with 
my brother, I turned towards the Western \ States, 
passing through and stopping in Pennsylvania, where, 
again, good lands are very highly priced, and in 
Illinois, which was too settled for my purpose. At 
Quincy, Illinois, I met a very well-informed American 
gentleman, who strongly advised me to visit North- 
western Iowa, and informed me that when his two 
sons had finished their education at Harvard Univer- 
sity he intended to settle them there. On our way 
we passed through the State of Missouri, a magnifi- 
cent country, but cursed with a most wretched and 
shiftless population, and I then made up my mind 
I would have nothing further to do with the South 
with its ''low whites and coloured gentlemen." The 
eastern part of Kansas and Nebraska we liked more 
than any country we had yet seen, but fever and ague 
we found too prevalent in Kansas, and in Nebraska 
water was not as plentiful as it should be for stock; 
wells were frequently over 100 feet in depth. 

We then moved into North-Western Iowa, and were 
at once enabled to endorse the favourable opinion 
given us by our friend in Illinois. After a long and 
careful investigation we made up our minds we would 
not spend more time and money in seeking for a 
better region for stock raising and sheep farming, 
North-Western Iowa combining it seemed to us every 



62 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

favourable circumstance. My brother at once resolved 
to leave Virginia, and, after settling matters at home, 
we bought lands in Crawford County, and have no 
hesitation in saying that neither of us have for a 
moment regretted our choice.^^ 



II 

FARMING THE VIRGIN LAND 

1878-1879 

After taking up their residence at Denison the 
two Close brothers at once divided their purchase 
into quarter section tracts and let contracts for 
the construction of buildings and the breaking of 
the prairie sod. A frame house of the simplest 
and cheapest design was erected upon each of the 
twenty farms: its dimensions were sixteen by 
twenty-two feet with an eight-foot ceiling in the 
two rooms downstairs and four and a half foot 
side walls and slanting ceilings in two rooms up- 
stairs, painted and double-boarded outside and 
plastered within, "perfectly wind and water tight 
and warm", all at a cost of about $250, including 
labor.^* The bam was a rough affair, and the 
cost of such an improvement besides a well came 
to about $100. ''Breaking" a certain portion of 
each farm for cultivation was done by contractors 
at the rate of $2.00 per acre. 

Northwestern Iowa in a state of nature com- 
m.ended itself to these Englishmen who wanted 
quick returns because they were not compelled to 

V 63 



64 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

spend the best part of their lives ''cutting down 
trees, uprooting stumps, and clearing away heavy 
logs" at a cost of from fifteen to twenty dollars 
per acre as in a timber country: on the contrary, 
the work on the prairie was very simple, neces- 
sitating only the ploughing of the sod to a depth 
of a few inches. Thus, it was said, a good team 
of three horses or mules and a sixteen or eighteen 
inch plough could break up two acres of prairie 
sod a day, there being no rocks, stones, roots, or 
other impediments to contend with.^^ The months 
of May, June, and part of July — the breaking- 
season — were spent turning as much of the three 
thousand acres as possible in order that the sod 
might rot thoroughly before the sowing of the next 
year's crops, the newly broken land yielding no 
returns in 1878. The Closes then sublet some of 
their farms to tenants and worked some directly 
on their own account. 

As landlords in Iowa the 3^oung Englishmen be- 
gan to operate on a principle which was gradually 
perfected during the next half dozen years. For 
the enlightenment of landowners in England, the 
following description of their sj^stem of letting 
farms was published in the mother country : 

We came to the conclusion that, however good 
theoretically might be Dalrymple 's^® system of farm- 
ing a very large area, it would not pay in the end as 



FARMING THE VIRGIN LAND 65 

well as letting the farms to the renters for an equal 
share of the crop — i. e., we provide the tenant with 
land ready for cultivation, a small but good house 
with rough stabling or sheds, and also the seed for 
the crops, while the tenant provides everything else 
— labour, machinery, horses, etc., and puts our share 
of the crops into the granary, we having divided the 
crop, equally, bushel per bushel, as it comes from the 
thrashing-machine. Our agreements with the tenants 
are very strict, and we reserve the right to put other 
labour on at their exclusive charge if we are satisfied 
they are not doing their work in a proper way. By 
this system we can farm a very large area with a 
minimum of trouble, and are thus able at the same 
time to turn our attention to stock raising and sheep 
farming. We also noticed that the farmers, as a class, 
were extraordinarily careless in the way they looked 
after their own horses and machinery, and we natural- 
ly thought if they took so little care of their own 
property that they would take still less care of ours, 
and calculated that it would be more profitable to put 
into an increased quantity of lands the large amount 
of capital which on Dalrymple's system would be 
needed for horses, machinery, and perishable property. 
Even if we did not some years secure as large an 
average of returns as Dalrymple, we should be amply 
compensated by the greater amount of lands we held, 
and we felt confident that they would materially rise 
in value, as has been the case, and we also calculated 
that a bad year such as 1878, when wheat w^as struck 
with blight, would be a far less serious matter to us. 
"We had no difficulty whatever in finding renters on 



66 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

our terms, and as new breaking is particularly adapt- 
ed to wheat, we had by far the greater part of our 
land sown with that cereal." 

The Close system did not consist merely of hold- 
ing virgin land on the chance of a rise in value: 
on the contrary, they built houses, ploughed the 
sod, and improved their property so as to make it 
productive of income, wherein they conceived lay 
the distinction between legitimate business and 
speculation in land.^^ Tenants met the rent for 
wheat lands in kind on the half-share principle; 
and they paid an average of $2.00 per acre for 
Indian corn lands, owing to the difficulty of col- 
lecting it in kind. Tenants of the Close farms 
were thus directly interested in the yield; and 
when the harvest of 1879 was gathered in, the 
Close brothers published the following statement 
of the expenses and receipts of an average farm 
— namely, '^ Soldier Farm" on the northwest 
quarter of section fourteen in Soldier Township, 
Crawford County: 

Expenses in 1878 

£ s. d. 
Cost of 160 acres of land at 14s. 

[$3.50] per acre 112 [$560] 

Breaking 90 acres at 8s. [$2.00] 

per acre 36 [$180] 

House, stable, and well ... 69 7 [$346.75] 



FARMING THE VIRGIN LAND 67 

Seed 16 10 [$ 82.50] 

Taxes for farm and buildings . 3 12 [$ 18.00] 
Total 237 9 [$1187.25] 

Receipts in 1879 

The yield on this farm from 90 acres only was 1,373 
bushels of wheat, or an average of 15^/4 bushels per acre. 
Our share thus amounts to 686V2 bushels, the farmer having 
received a like amount. By the last advices .... we could 
sell the wheat at the granary door for 3s. 9d. [93 cents] per 
bushel; thus: — 

6861/2 bushels wheat at 3s. 9d. [93 cents] per bushel .... 
£128 14s. 4i/2d. [$638.45] A net profit to us of 54 per cent 
on the capital invested .... 

Of course circumstances make this year an exceptionally 
good one, but taking last year's prices of 2s. 5d. [60 cents] 
per bushel, the lowest it has ever been in our neighbourhood, 
the net profit would still be over 35 per cent, with only 90 
acres in cultivation,^® 

The year 1879 turned out to be a very good one 
for the young investors: owing to the failure of 
crops in Europe, high prices prevailed in America. 
In the illustrative figures quoted above no account 
was taken of deterioration, but that was more 
than counterbalanced by the increase in the value 
of the farm. At the same time more of the prairie 
sod on each farm was broken in 1879 for cultiva- 
tion in 1880. 



Ill 

THE CLOSES EXTEND THEIR HOLDINGS 

Having embarked upon the investment of capi- 
tal in land and pleased with the prospect of their 
operations, the two Close brothers decided to ex- 
tend their acreage; indeed, they would have ex- 
panded their holdings in Crawford County if 
more virgin land had been available at a reason- 
able price. Finding the best areas bought up in 
that county, they turned to the counties farther 
north where they were informed on good author- 
ity — probably Daniel Paullin — one of the finest 
and most fertile portions of the United States had 
been fearfully scourged by grasshoppers and 
where the pioneers were then offering to sell their 
holdings at a sacrifice/" 

Without waiting to see how the balance sheet 
would stand in 1879, at the end of the year 1878 
the Closes authorized their purchasing agent, Mr. 
Paullin, to buy the Bloodgood lands in Plymouth, 
Cherokee, and Woodbury counties. Accordingly, 
at the rate of $2.40 per acre they obtained 16,080 
acres of the most perfect land in Elkhorn, Port- 
land, and Preston townships of Plymouth County 

68 



CLOSES EXTEND THEIR HOLDINGS 69 

— an event which a Le Mars editor greeted with 
the headline, '^Hail Britannia!" They were re- 
ported as negotiating for 50,000 acres more, and 
as planning to make Le Mars their headquarters 
in February, 1879. A large number of English 
farmers were expected to occupy at least one-half 
of these lands, if one may believe the newspaper 
story which ends with the words that ''not only 
our county but northwestern Iowa will receive an 
important addition of sturdy, thrifty, well-to-do, 
law-abiding immigrants that will add materially 
to our growth and prosperity."" 

Meanwhile their brothers, John and James 
Close — who were in England engaged ^in the 
banking business of an uncle. Sir William Cun- 
liffe Brooks, John at Manchester and James at 
Blackburn — had learned of the probable success 
of the venture. Because the indoor life did not 
suit him James threw up his position and joined 
the boys in Iowa in time to join in the purchase 
of the Bloodgood lands.^^ John, on the other 
hand, having a wife and children, resolved to stick 
to his job in England, eventually becoming very 
wealthy; but he furnished the three brothers in 
America with a good deal of money to invest not 
only for himself but also for his English friends." 

It is clear that the Close brothers were con- 
vinced that if it was necessary to take chances in 



70 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

order to make money no two risks were in the 
long run better than those which had never failed 
man since the world began: the risk of the fruits 
of the earth and the risk of the spread of popula- 
tion westward. They had learned the lesson that 
the growing of grain and the raising of live stock 
in America were still in their infancy. Even in 
the depth of the commercial depression of 1877, 
^^when about half the American nation was going 
through the bankruptcy court, and when people 
were saying the future of trade was loss and not 
profit'^, William B. Close realized 'Hhat, notwith- 
standing, the farmers of America as a class were 
making money. '^ A few years before, corn had 
been burned as fuel on Mississippi River steam- 
boats and wheat had been left to rot in the fields 
of California simply because the cost of trans- 
portation to places where grain was needed was 
prohibitive. 

Eventually, however, according to a well-in- 
formed English observer, 'Hhe means of trans- 
portation had been developed to an extraordinary 
extent. Railways and canals had been made far 
beyond the traffic requirements of the country, and 
when in the depression of 1874-8 there was less to 
carry, the fiercest competition ensued between the 
companies. Grain was at one time carried from 
Chicago to New York, 1,000 miles, for 10 cents 



CLOSES EXTEND THEIR HOLDINGS 71 

per 100 lbs., or less than a fourth of the price that 
had been charged a few years before, and simul- 
taneously freights across the Atlantic were re- 
duced from 10s. to 5s per ton. Of course most of 
the railway companies went into bankruptcy, but 
the discover}^ was made that it is not so much Hhe 
long haul ' as the terminal charges which constitute 
the cost of transport ; and the eventual consolida- 
tion of rival and insolvent systems, together with 
the increased tonnage which followed the re- 
duction of rates, confirmed the policy of cheap 
freights."'* 

In the summer of 1879 William B. Close was 
reported as having purchased from John Blood- 
good and wife and Louise Stanton, widow, $34,740 
worth of land in Plymouth, Woodbury, and Chero- 
kee counties. Another Englishman, R. G-. M. 
Graham, also invested heavily in lands in this 
reffion.®^ 



IV 
HEADQUARTERS AT LE MARS 

Le Mars became the headquarters of the Close 
brothers because it was a natural gateway to the 
unoccupied lands of the neighboring counties : that 
virgin region became the scene of their operations 
because it promised the most excellent returns on 
their investment of time and money. Chicago, the 
greatest live stock and produce market in the 
world, whose prices regulated all other markets, 
was accessible by reason of a fair network of rail- 
roads: the Illinois Central in Plymouth, Wood- 
bury, and Cherokee counties; the Sioux City and 
St. Paul which traversed Plymouth, Sioux, 
O'Brien, and Osceola counties; and the Chicago, 
Milwaukee and St. Paul which crossed Sioux and 
O'Brien counties. These lines made marketing 
possible: without them there could have been no 
promise of better things to come. 

Le Mars was founded some time after the first 
inhabitants made settlements in Plymouth County. 
What is now the Illinois Central Railroad had 
been extended to this region from Iowa Falls on 
its way to Sioux City in 1869. With the railroad 

72 



HEADQUARTERS AT LE MARS 73 

came to^vn-planners from the East ; and when the 
St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad was projected 
through the same region, Le Mars was laid out at 
the junction of the two routes and in 1873 was 
made the county seat in place of Melbourne. Thus, 
accessible markets to the south, north, and east 
became the lodestone to attract farmers to cheap 
lands richly endowed by nature in all the counties 
of northwestern Iowa. Immigration to these un- 
occupied lands at once began to boom, although 
the grasshopper plague continued imabated sev- 
eral seasons and dampened the ardor of hundreds 
who might otherwise have joined the rush. To 
prove how the arrival of railroads brought people 
to this region one needs only to note the increase 
of population during the first ''railroad decade" 
as compared with previous years.^^ 

But even so, in view of these fine advantages 
coupled with the natural riches of soil and a 
healthful climate, it is surprising that northwest- 
ern Iowa still offered such a vast quantity of cheap 
land and claimed so comparatively few settlers. 
The explanation is not far to seek. When in the 
year 1867 the United States government opened 
these lands "for sale and preemption, they 
were eagerly bought up by speculators, who had 
heard of the fame of this region"." These specu- 
lators at once put such prices on their lands that 



74 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

the poorest class of settlers passed on to the 
cheaper regions farther West; and for seven or 
eight years the value of land remained almost 
stationar}^ 

It was because a few of the speculators, who 
usually resided in eastern cities, were hard pressed 
for ready cash that the Close brothers were able 
to get some very good bargains. Furthermore, an- 
other circumstance played into their hands: the 
country had acquired a bad name from the ravag- 
ing visitations of grasshoppers in recent years. 
The latter fact did not, however, discourage the 
Closes who had made a thorough study of the sit- 
uation and felt sure that the grasshopper pest had 
pretty nearly run its course in this region as it 
had done in other places: "North- Western Iowa 
being no longer the frontiers of the settled portion 
of the country, these incursions are becoming 
much less frequent, and when the grasshoppers do 
come, it is only in scattered flights, damaging a 
wheat field here and there. ' '^^ 

Convinced of the financial soundness of their 
undertaking, the Closes were not long in enlisting 
the interest and capital of other English univer- 
sity and public school men. British farmers and 
small capitalists seem to have been in considerable 
distress at that time, as was also the ''cadet" who 
had no future in the old country. The idea of 



HEADQUARTERS AT LE MARS 75 

land-owning in America and the ability of Amer- 
ica to feed the world, which had begun to work a 
momentous social and economic change in Eng- 
land, now offered a solution of the English country 
gentleman's difficult problem — '^how to recover 
his rents, and provide for his younger sons. ' ^^^ A 
great deal of correspondence appeared in the press 
on the question "What to do with our Boys?" 

William B. Close saw the opportunity and lost 
no time in acquainting his friends in England 
with the possibilities of the new country. In 
November, 1879, he wrote letters which appeared 
in Land and Wate7% the newspapers of Manches- 
ter, and The Times of London,^" setting forth the 
reasons why he settled in northwestern Iowa, gen- 
eral information about the State of Iowa, the ex- 
perience of the Closes with farming in its different 
branches, their method of letting farms, and a 
statement of the expenses and returns on a typical 
160 acre farm. So interesting and valuable are 
Mr. Close's letters about grain growing, cattle and 
hog raising, and sheep farming that if space did 
not forbid they would be worth republishing in 
this connection. Suffice it to say, the writer was 
so well known in England as a Cambridge oars- 
man that his reports attracted much attention. 

In December, 1879, according to the largest 
London daily,^^ the Closes owned forty 160 acre 



76 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

wheat farms which they had let out to tenants, 
supplying the land ready for cultivation, a house 
with rough sheds for stabling, and necessary seed ; 
while each tenant on his part provided labor, 
machinery, and everything else. The crops were 
to be divided equally between tenant and owners. 
Mr. Close assured Englishmen that his first year's 
returns on wheat presented a strong contrast to 
those he got from the farms he owned in England ; 
and he summed up the relative merits of different 
sections of the western country in these words: 
''Those who wish to go and raise wheat should go 
to Minnesota and Manitoba; those who prefer 
stock-raising, to the warmer countries south and 
where maize is grown, viz., Iowa, Nebraska, 
Kansas". 



Y 

A PAMPHLET ON FARMING IN IOWA 

William B. Close's marriage to Miss Mary 
PauUin in New York City took place about the 
same time that his letters were running in the 
English press/^ The newly wedded couple went 
to England for their honeymoon. After their 
arrival Mr. Close for several months spent much 
time in conferences with his fellow countrjonen on 
the subject of northwestern Iowa; and he was 
flooded with thousands of letters asking for fur- 
ther information. His own letters had opened the 
eyes of English landowners who could not squeeze 
more than three per cent out of their property. 

At 38 Cornhill, London, and 90 King Street, 
Manchester, the recently organized firm of Close 
Brothers and Company set up offices where Mr. 
Close met or wrote to interested persons daily and 
encouraged emigration to the Iowa ''colony"." 
To furnish full particulars he prepared a pamph- 
let on Farming in North-Western Iowa, of which 
several thousand copies were printed for distribu- 
tion in January and February, 1880. 

Prospective emigrants were informed as to the 

77 



78 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

best steamship and railroad lines with which the 
Close brothers had arranged special rates; and 
they were advised on how to render the voyage as 
easy and inexpensive as possible and how to fit 
themselves out so as to save much useless expense 
and trouble. The actual fare to Le Mars in such 
cases was represented to be under $55 for travel 
by steerage and emigrant trains^ under $65 by 
intermediate, and from $75 to $95 by saloon and 
first-class trains — children under twelve going 
for half price and free under one. The cost of 
living and personal expenses of the twelve or 
fourteen days' journey from Liverpool to Le Mars 
generally came to $15 or $20 extra. 

English emigrants were urged to allow for 
plenty of time at Le Mars in order that they might 
look about and thoroughly satisfy themselves that 
the country suited them before buying farms. 
Then, too, it would take some time to get all things 
in readiness for breaking and ploughing in April. 
Those who did not mind cold would lose nothing 
by going early and gaining experience; but those 
who were unable to go out before the breaking 
season opened could nevertheless buy land and 
have it improved through the Close firm, thus 
sa^TLng a whole year.^* 

As owners of cattle, sheep, and grain farms, the 
Closes had acquired considerable knowledge of the 



PAMPHLET ON FARMING IN IOWA 79 

new country, of the people, and of farming in 
general: this experience they now placed at the 
disposal of Englishmen who had some capital. The 
firm annoimced its intention to establish *'a colony 
of English people of the better class, and thus 
combine Western farming with some English 
society": artisans or mechanics were not urged 
to emigrate unless they were able and willing to 
combine farming with their other occupations in 
what was a purely agricultural district ; and labor- 
ers without means were not encouraged to emi- 
grate unless they had friends in America to give 
them employment immediatly ' on arrival, other- 
wise they would be worse off in the United States 
than in England." 

Thus the Close brothers made their strongest 
appeal to men with sufficient capital to be able to 
start good stock farms because stock farming was 
the thing for which northwestern Iowa was best 
adapted. They addressed themselves particularly 
to practical farmers who could emigrate and need 
lose no time in purchasing their farms and setting 
to work. To quote further from their pamphlet: 

An inexperienced man shonld not invest his money 
at once, but should board and lodge on some farm 
for at least a year. The more a man brings the quick- 
er and greater will be the returns. £500 will enable 
a man to buy and equip a farm of 160 acres for grow- 



80 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ing grain, but will leave scarcely any margin for the 
purchase of stock. To succeed, settlers, unless pro- 
vided with ample means, must begin by roughing it 
somewhat and do all the work themselves, employing 
as little labour as possible, either out-door or in-door. 
We wish to impress upon them the fact that they must 
make up their minds to hard work, probably harder 
than they have ever done before, but at the same time 
work of which they will directly reap the full return. 
Women and children must also help to keep down ex- 
penses by doing the house work, and looking after the 
dairy, poultry, &c. 

For a man who is used to good living in England, 
and to a sedentary life, unaccustomed to roughing it, 
and inexperienced in farming, we consider £1,000 is 
not too much to bring out. Our experience is that, 
however mlling he may be to rough it and save ex- 
penses, it takes time for him to work as a labourer, 
and thus save as much as possible each year to re- 
invest. Indeed it is the capital invested in live-stock 
over and above the first £500 (which is tied up in 
lands, buildings, &c.) that enables a man rapidly to 
increase his capital.^® 

It is not clear whether the Closes had organized 
a partnership in England before they invested in 
Iowa lands ; but a newspaper reporter who inter- 
viewed James B. Close is authority for the infor- 
mation that when the brothers made their first 
appearance in Le Mars in 1878 they ''organized 
as a branch of the London house, making a daily 
exchange and brokerage business between England 



PAMPHLET ON FARMING IN IOWA 81 

and America"." Regardless of the date and man- 
ner of its origin, the new partnership very early 
took in Constantine W. Benson, another well- 
known Cambridge oarsman. The firm at once ad- 
vertised its general purpose to promote the estab- 
lishment of an English community among the 
American inhabitants of Plymouth County. Fur- 
thermore, the firm announced that it would trans- 
act a general land business: it would not sell the 
Close farms to settlers or investors, nor was it 
interested in selling the lands of any particular 
persons or companies. On the price of Iowa lands, 
the firm's statement was as follows: 

The price of lands varies according to its quality 
and contiguity to railroads. We have lists of first 
class lands, within eight or ten miles of railway sta- 
tions, that can yet be bought, cash down, for 15s. to 
£1 per statute acre in tracts of 80 to 160 acres, and 
suitable in all respects for stock or grain farms; but 
if two or three thousand acres are bought in the same 
purchase the price would not be more than 12s. to 14s. 
per acre, cash down. We generally buy lands from 
non-residents, and have travelled even as far as New 
York, 1,500 miles, to settle a bargain when we thought 
it was a good one. In this way we constantly hear of 
lands for sale 25 per cent cheaper than the lands 
offered us by the railroad companies, who can afford 
to hold their lands.^* 

The Close firm also acted as an agent for lend- 



82 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ing money at eight per cent on the security of first 
mortgages on improved farms, no loan exceeding 
twenty-five per cent of the value of a farm. In 
preference to investing capital in mortgages, how- 
ever, the firm recommended investments in lands ; 
for besides ''getting a good yearly return, which 
depends as much on the crops as does the interest 
from loans, there is the profit from the rise in the 
value of the lands." Accordingly, the Closes 
undertook to act as agents for English investors 
who could not go out to Iowa: they offered not 
only to buy lands for such persons, but also to 
improve them, obtain tenants, and give them the 
same attention as their own farms. Owing to the 
fact that lands were rapidly being taken up and 
steadily rising in value due to renewed immigra- 
tion, the firm asserted that ''no combination of 
circumstances could make it a better time to in- 
vest", and prophesied that in a very few years the 
prices of lands in the superior agricultural region 
of the Missouri water-shed would nearly equal 
those in the older portions of the State.''® 

Another object of the Close firm was to serve 
prospective emigrants as agents and help them on 
arrival in Iowa. Those who wished to join the 
"Close Colony", as it came to be called, were 
offered the following advantages: 

Should the inquirer place himself under the guid- 



PAMPHLET ON FARMING IN IOWA 83 

ance of our firm, he will be shown immediately on his 
arrival at Le Mars lists of the best and cheapest 
lands from which to select a desirable farm, thus 
avoiding the useless expense of hotels, and the waste 
of time and money occasioned by travelling about the 
country. We have also arranged with a number of 
farmers in our neighborhood, with any of whom a 
new-comer, by paying for board and lodging to the 
amount of twelve to fourteen shillings a week, could 
stay until he had made up his mind whether the 
country and mode of life would suit him or not. Or, 
if he should be totally inexperienced, we would help 
him to find a stock farm, where, if he makes himself 
sufficiently useful, he will be boarded and lodged in 
exchange for his work, and in time perhaps get 
wages; thus he could, before laying out his money, 
get a practical insight into farming, although for this 
he must make up his mind to a good deal of roughing 
it. Until sufficiently experienced he could always 
come to the firm for advice and guidance. Should the 
settler (in any of the above cases) decide on buying 
any of the lands he sees, we will help him to buy them 
at the lowest price, look to the title — a most import- 
ant item, and one that requires considerable experience 
(it being a frequent practice throughout the United 
States and Canada to sell lands to settlers with bad 
titles) — and see that the deed is made out correctly, 
and properly recorded. Then, after the land is bought, 
we advise him as to the building of the house and the 
sheds; also shoAV him how to superintend the ''break- 
ing," or first ploughing of the land, which requires 
considerable care (bad ''breaking" showing its effect 



84 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

for several years afterwards) ; and generally look 
after the new-comer's interests until he is fully settled 
on his farm.^° 

The Close firm undertook to make the best bar- 
gains possible for all those who had dealings with 
it. Owing to the fact that raw young Englishmen 
found it difficult to deal 'Svith the natives of a 
country where everything has its price", and 
owing to the further fact that "to buy land from 
an Iowa agent, or stock from a Minnesota farmer, 
and not get the worst of the bargain, requires a 
peculiarly level head, and a fool and his money 
are parted at least as easily as in the old country", 
the Closes worked out a system of cooperation to 
which they called particular attention: having 
dealt far more extensively in lands than anyone 
else in the country and being always advised when 
cheap land w^as on the market, the firm could buy 
land three to four shillings an acre cheaper than 
the local agents, and by bujdng land for several 
English purchasers at the same time, ,the firm 
could make still further savings. 

The Closes could, moreover, obtain wholesale 
rates from large lumber firms who shipped direct, 
so that English settlers were enabled to effect a 
great saving on the cost of constructing houses 
and barns; and if the improvements on a large 
number of newly purchased farms w^ere covered 



PAMPHLET ON FARMING IN IOWA 85 

in the same contract, the firm could build fully 
one-third cheaper than the local agents and car- 
penters. Finally, the Closes were in a position to 
obtain machinery, implements, stoves, furniture, 
and other articles from the manufacturers at 
wholesale prices. 

For all these services in the immigrant's behalf, 
thus saving him a large sum in actual expenses 
besides preventing him from falling into the hands 
of unscrupulous agents, the Close firm charged a 
commission of $250, or five per cent on the mini- 
mum sum of $5000 which the firm required *' those 
to have who wish to form part of the colony, which 
includes the commission on purchase of land up to 
160 acres ' ', and other items of expense enumerated 
above. If more than 160 acres were wanted by 
anyone, a further commission of five per cent was 
charged. The firm also required a deposit of $125 
before the emigrant left England, but if on arrival 
in Iowa he w^as dissatisfied with the country and 
left within one month without purchasing land, 
the deposit was returned — otherwise the settler 
was required to pay the balance when he '" pur- 
chased his farm.®^ 

In this connection it is interesting to note that 
the Closes offered to take some pupils on their 
own stock farms ^'at a fixed premium" because it 
was *' desirable for those who have sufficient capi- 



86 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

tal to start a large stock farm to learn thoroughly 
how to lay out their money before they actually do 
so, and avoid many of the mistakes which new 
comers are apt to fall into."®"" 



VI 

IOWA MADE ATTRACTIVE TO 
ENGLISHMEN 

To the small capitalist class of England, the 
Closes made Iowa as attractive as possible. They 
were careful to point out that but little over one- 
third of the State was under cultivation, although 
ninety-five per cent of its total area was tillable; 
that it had a healthful climate, a fertile soil, and 
an abundance of pure springs and running brooks ; 
that it was the first State of the Union in the pro- 
duction of wheat and hogs, second in corn, third 
in barley, fifth in the number of milch cows, and 
second to none in dairying; and lastly that Iowa 
had no Indians or negroes, but a thoroughly settled 
and orderly people who never carried or wanted 
'^ fire-arms, revolvers, bowie-knives, and such play- 
things". The possible objection that Iowa was a 
frontier wilderness was answered in this wise : 

Emigrants to Iowa must not imagine they are go- 
ing beyond civilisation. They will find the habits 
and customs of the people in Iowa in a great measure 
similar to those in England, and will not be called 
upon to abandon their ordinary comforts and con- 

87 



88 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

veniences or to encounter the hardships and privations 
of a frontier life. Pioneering, the forerunner of per- 
manent improvements, has gone beyond Iowa, and is 
now only to be found in Western Kansas, Nebraska, 
Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, and other newer por- 
tions of the great continent of America. In Iowa are 
orchards and vineyards, planted years ago, and the 
whole country is well supplied with roads, bridges, 
mills, shops, stores, and hotels, as also with churches, 
colleges, and schools. And it is almost impossible to 
get more than twenty miles from a railroad.^^ 

The physical geography of Iowa in general, a 
brief description of Plymouth, Woodbury, Chero- 
kee, and Sioux counties, the weather and rainfall, 
and the extremely rich and easily cultivated soil 
were truthfully presented to prospective settlers. 
The silicious marl or bluff deposit of northwestern 
Iowa, declared to have originated as an accumula- 
tion of sediment in an ancient lake which was 
afterwards drained and closely resembling the 
loess deposit of the Rhine Valley, w^as alleged to 
be superior in quality to the black loam of the 
counties which drained toward the Mississippi. 
The soil of the Missouri slope was alleged to com- 
bine *' perfect natural drainage with a surface 
accumulation of from two to six feet of decayed 
vegetable growth for manure."** 

Englishmen who were interested in sheep rais- 
ing were advised of the special advantages of the 



IOWA MADE ATTRACTIVE 89 

cheap bluff lands overlooking the Missouri and the 
Big Sioux rivers, with hillsides "clothed with the 
most excellent grasses, even to the summits", re- 
sembling in general the celebrated "Downs" of 
England.''' Here sheep could be raised at an in- 
considerable cost. 

Settlers in northwestern Iowa were assured of 
a good supply of wood and coal from Iowa fields. 
It was pointed out also that educational advan- 
tages were abundant, while the burden of local and 
State taxation was not heavy. There were assur- 
ances of excellent highways, "as the prairie makes 
admirable roads and the streams are easily 
bridged"; of "plenty of good doctors in the towns, 
and no want of doctors in the country, who com- 
bine farming with their profession, and who 
would be useful in an emergency and until more 
experienced aid was procured"; of a demand for 
good, industrious, and intelligent girls who "are 
looked upon more in the light of helps than ser- 
vants"; of capital small game shooting — any 
quantity of prairie hens, snipe, woodcock, and 
American quail — and splendid wild duck and 
goose shooting in the autumn and spring, with a 
few deer ; and of streams and lakes, especially near 
the Minnesota boundary, "full of an extraordi- 
nary number and variety of fish, of wall-eyed pike, 
cat-fish, and bass". Such were the colors which 



90 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

were used to make the picture of northwestern 
Iowa attractive to Englishmen.^^ These accounts 
aroused the interest of many English farmers. 

While the Closes gave Englishmen no flattering 
description of western farmmg methods, they did 
convey an idea of what good farming promised in 
the following terms : 

Farming in the newer portions of the Western 
States is generally carried on in the roughest and 
rudest way, in spite of the fact that the best machinery 
is used for everything. Except among the very best 
class of farmers, no one thinks of utilising waste 
which is burnt on the prairie, or of manuring their 
lands; and when the manure heap gets so large as 
to be in the way, the stables or sheds are pulled down, 
and put up in a fresh place. There is not much science 
in Western farming, but good farming always pays; 
and an Englishman, who knows how to combine some 
of his old country farming with the best points of 
American farming, will easily double the average 
yield, and must turn out a successful man.*^ 

Many prospectuses of agricultural schemes in 
foreign lands seem to have been circulating in 
England in the year 1880, each vaunting its own 
locality and offering a golden road to distressed 
British farmers, small capitalists, and cadets. 
This fact led one English writer to call it "a sort 
of beggar-my-neighbour game of fortune-making", 
and the wonder was how there could be so manv 



IOWA MADE ATTRACTIVE 91 

Paradises and how Englishmen had been left "so 
long in benighted ignorance of them. ' '^^ 

The Close brothers, however, did not hesitate to 
point out the drawbacks of the new country which 
they w^ere promoting. They made it clear that 
every new settlement had its difficulties: w^heat 
growing in Iowa had suffered from grasshoppers 
and sometimes from blight; and stock raising 
necessitated winter feeding, a fact which in their 
judgment was more than offset by ''our entire 
immmiity from droughts, the cheapness and abmi- 
dance of grain and hay, our nearness to market, 
and the superior condition of grain-fed cattle to 
grass-fed on arrival at their destination after a 
long journey." Cold weather might also be con- 
sidered a drawback ; but even that was not minded, 
except for an occasional blizzard, because it was 
a dry cold, just as the extreme heat in summer was 
a dry heat and not oppressive. Furthermore, ''the 
lack of society, which is inevitable to a new colony, 
and which the first ladies who went out have felt 
a little, is being rapidly obviated by the class and 
the number of the people going out"; and as for 
the want of trained servants, one of the best so- 
cieties in Scotland for training young girls had 
offered to supply good families going to north- 
western lowa.^^ 

That the picture was not more alluring than the 



92 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

facts warranted was adequately attested by Eng- 
lishmen who had gone to Iowa and had already 
had sufficient time to make up their minds about 
the country. One gentleman who had lived in 
Iowa several years and spent many more in other 
parts of America and Canada wrote that he did 
not know of a single foreign settler who regretted 
coming to Iowa; nor was he acquainted with any 
part of America which presented such great ad- 
vantages as did Iowa for stock raising and sheep 
farming. 

After eight months' residence, Robert G. Max- 
tone Graham was thoroughly satisfied: he enjoyed 
the life in Iowa, and found himself in better health 
than when he was in England. W. H. Statter, W. 
Roy lance Court, Jr., Henr,y Garnett, and H. Grey 
de Pledge declared that the Close description of 
northwestern Iowa was fully borne out by the 
facts, that the accounts w^ere not a bit exaggerated 
or too puffed up, and that it was a grand country. 
Edward T. Wright, Philip Barnett, W. P. Bridson, 
the Hon. H. F. Sugden, and Arthur Gee had visit- 
ed the region and were convinced of its advan- 
tages. During an extensive tour in the summer of 
1878 Rudolph C. Lehmann of London passed 
through Plymouth County and obtained some very 
good first-hand information. To quote from a 
letter on his travels : 



IOWA MADE ATTRACTIVE 93 

During the greater part of this tour we kept clear 
of hotels, and put up at night at the house of the 
nearest farmer: thus my opportunities of acquiring 
information were better than those of the ordinary 
traveller by railroad. Every farmer with whom I 
talked spoke in the most enthusiastic terms of the soil, 
the richness and inexhaustible fertility of which must 
seem remarkable to anyone accustomed only to Eng- 
lish agriculture and necessary rotation of crops. To 
employ the expression of one farmer, "You scratch 
the ground with a toothpick, and reap two harvests 
a year." 

R. P. Kay wrote to the Closes that it was with 
great regret that he had left Iowa — although he 
still had a farm there — because Mrs. Kay could 
not stay, adding: *'It is, as you told me, rather 
rough for ladies.'"" 



yii 

ENGLISH SETTLERS WELCOMED AT 
LE MARS 

Before the Closes had prepared their pamphlet 
for distribution and before William B. Close had 
left for England, forty or fifty gentlemen, some 
with their families, had arrived at Le Mars on Mr. 
Close's recommendation, and not one of them had 
expressed dissatisfaction with northwestern Iowa 
*'from a farmer's point of view." This fact was 
given plenty of publicity in England. ''^ A large 
number of these first newcomers seem to have 
settled southeast of Le Mars, but all received an 
enthusiastic welcome, at least so far as the local 
press was concerned. In the autumn of 1879 one 
editor made the following announcement : 

Last Thursday another installment of English cap- 
italists reached Le Mars, and they are already on the 
look-out for lands. It is estimated that by the 1st of 
January one hundred others will sail for America, 
with Northwestern Iowa as their destination. And 
we most heartily welcome them. Those already here 
are gentlemen of culture, of fine social attainments, 
and they enter so heartily into the work of improv- 
ing and building up this region that they set in motion 

94 



ENGLISH SETTLERS WELCOMED 95 

others who have been given to croaking. By all means 
let the English and the French and the Germans and 
the Irish come to Northwestern Iowa and build homes 
for themselves and for others.*^^ 

And two weeks later the American inhabitants 
of Le Mars and vicinity were furnished with more 
glad tidings: 

The Messrs. Close Brothers, Mr. Grahame, and the 
other English capitalists have decided to locate per- 
manently in Le Mars, and will have their office in the 
basement of Dent's brick bank building, on Sixth 
Street. That this determination is a wise one for the 
gentlemen named we have no doubt, and Le Mars 
will be glad to have them remain with us. These 
gentlemen are improving vast quantities of land in 
this and adjacent counties ; but what they have already 
done is only a small matter to what they will do in 
the future. They are giving employment to many 
worthy men; making it an easy matter for poor men 
to secure good farms, encouraging emigration hither- 
ward, and are in fact busy all the time doing some- 
thing that advances the prosperity of Northwest Iowa. 
We repeat, we are gratified to have them locate in 
Le Mars."^ 

From time to time during the next few years, 
the Le Mars newspapers recorded the arrival of 
English people in *' rafts'* or *' detachments of 
yeomanry", or else told of their being on the way. 
Thus, in December, 1879, twenty gentlemen with 
their families were reported to have set sail from 



96 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

England; in March, 1880, seventy more English 
friends of the Closes were expected to reach Le 
Mars in a few weeks; and in April, 1880, scores 
of newcomers from the wealthy class of Man- 
chester had arrived.^* In order to cope with the 
invasion, and especially to cater to the peculiar 
wants of their fellow countrymen, Close Brothers 
and Company bought the Commercial Hotel and 
renamed it '' Albion House"/' 

Although the Close project early received a wel- 
come from Le Mars editors, some criticism was 
voiced at St. Paul because the firm encouraged 
only the immigration of the educated Englishman 
who commanded at least $2500 and preferably 
more to start with. A Le Mars newspaper 
answered by calling this attack "a pusillanimous 
spirit of men whose souls are too small to see 
others prosper". About one year later when corn 
buskers were sorely needed, a correspondent sug- 
gested the remedy: ''If the Close Brothers were 
to use as much influence toward obtaining some 
of the laboring class from the manufacturing dis- 
tricts of England, or from some of the suffering 
counties of Ireland, they would bestow a greater 
blessing on the northwest than they do by bringing 
over capitalists, for capital can live anywhere", 
but labor was something the Northwest and especi- 
ally Plymouth County could not do without."® 



ENGLISH SETTLERS WELCOMED 97 

That the new life which had been instilled into 
the settlement of the region by the energy and 
enterprise of these representatives of English 
capital was appreciated is sufficiently attested by 
observers of the time. A correspondent of an 
eastern agricultural journal, for instance, con- 
cluded his lengthy article on what the Close broth- 
ers were domg for Plymouth, Sioux, Lyon, and 
Osceola counties in the following words : 

Many Englishmen are settling in Northwestern 
Iowa through this agency, purchasing and improving 
homesteads, in size and manner according to their 
tastes and means. We did not meet these gentlemen 
during our stay in these counties, but were informed 
by those Avho know, that they had been the means of 
bringing over $600,000 of money into this part of the 
state within the past two years, and were developing 
large stock farms, as individual investments, in Ply- 
mouth and Woodbury counties. Their average price 
is $6 per acre. Taxes are doubtless higher here than in 
the East, literally stated, but in fact they are much 
lower, when you estimate the difference in valuations 
— upon which, of course, the taxes are levied.^^ 

The Close brothers also found personal admirers 
in the little city which had thus far been the center 
of the district on which they had expended their 
wealth to make it "blossom as the rose". To quote 
from a writer in the local press : 

The achievements of these gentlemen during the 



98 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

past two years in the way of improving and develop- 
ing the country, stands without a parallel in the 
history of western civilization; and while the scope 
of their operations extends over several counties of 
Northwestern Iowa, the southern portion of Minnesota 
and Dakota, Lemars and Plymouth county have been 
so far, the greatest beneficiaries from the enterprise 
which they represent .... The business of the two 
firms''^ embraces the investment of English capital in 
lands, and the improvement of the same ; that is trans- 
forming the broad prairies of the peerless northwest 
into improved farms. They have expended hundreds 
of thousands of dollars, and have hundreds of thous- 
ands more to be applied in the same direction. In 
order that the reader may gain a more comprehensive 
idea of the magnitude of their operations we submit 
a brief statement of last year's achievements in Ply- 
mouth, Woodbury, Sioux, Lyon and Osceola counties 
mostly in the three first named. . . . 

Tune and space forbid more lengthy reference to 
an enterprise that has done so much for towTi and 
country but we should have failed to perform our 
whole duty, if we were to leave the subject before us 
without according in behalf of Lemars and Plymouth 
county a meed of praise for the untiring energy dis- 
played by the above firm in the interest of both city 
and country. Their business operations have con- 
tributed vastly to the prosperity of Northwestern 
Iowa, and in the future as in the past, Lemars should 
delight to do honor to an agency that has done so 
much to make the young city what it is — one of the 
most flourishing and prosperous in the State.^^ 



VIII 

FORMATION OF THE IOWA LAND 
COMPANY 

At all times confident of the wonderful future 
in store for the counties of northwestern Iowa, the 
Close brothers lost no reasonable opportunity to 
acquire as much land as possible. In March, 1880, 
they were reported as owning 30,000 acres; and 
one month later they bought 9900 acres, the east 
half of Union Township in Plymouth County."" 
So many and extensive were their purchases as 
subsequently amiounced in the press, that it would 
be difficult to compute how much land they ac- 
quired title to: only their books could reveal the 
exact figures, but these no longer exist."^ 

James B. Close was reported to have **seen fit 
to keep the operations and inside workings of the 
firm private until such time as they could get 
everything in order and in a working condition"; 
and so, it w^as not until interviewed by a Dubuque 
newspaperman in September, 1881, that he gave 
the first account of the firm's immense capacity 
for doing business. In the autumn of 1878 they 
bought 30,000 acres of wild land in Woodbury and 



99 



100 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Plymouth comities. In the spring of 1879 they 
became agents for London and other English 
capital in gradually increasing sums. During the 
year 1880 the firm bought land in Worth and Tay- 
lor counties and in northwestern Iowa the follow- 
ing amomits : at one time 18,280, at another 40,000, 
at still another 25,000, and later 14,000 acres 
more."^ 

What relations the Closes had with the land 
department of the Illinois Central Railroad can 
not be stated w^ith certainty, but in the summer of 
1880 it appears that E. F. Drake, land commis- 
sioner of the St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad, 
invited them to St. Paul for a conference and en- 
tertained them and C. W. Benson at his own home 
for several days. This visit led to a very impor- 
tant contract whereby the original plans of the 
English firm were ''enlarged to a scale of impor- 
tance more fruitful in its results than any coloniza- 
tion scheme hitherto inaugurated in the north- 
west.""' Eventually, as will be shown later, the 
Closes extended their holdings into counties along 
the Iowa-Minnesota border. 

During the w^hole course of their operations, 
with a single exception, the Close firm took no 
steps to plan or promote towns. In the autumn of 
1880 they platted near their farm in the south- 
eastern part of Plymouth County the village of 



FORMATION OF IOWA LAND COMPANY 101 

Quorn, because they expected the Chicago and 
Northwestern Railroad to come that way. Due to 
some misunderstanding, or because, as a local 
historian wrote later, ''the company, not liking 
the Johnny Bull methods of inducing railways to 
their embryo towns, finally platted Kingsley, one 
mile to the east", and so the fair hopes of the vil- 
lage of Quorn and its projectors were forever 
blasted."^ 

In January, 1881, the Closes are said to have 
bought from Bloomington (Illinois) speculators 
19,000 acres near Larchwood in Lyon County for 
about $90,000, and soon after they announced their 
intention to open an office at Rock Rapids in that 
county."^ In a letter written about this time, 
William B. Close asserted that for the past two 
years Woodbury, Plymouth, and Sioux counties 
had been the center of their operations and that 
the influx of Englishmen and well-to-do settlers 
had exhausted the cheap land and permanently 
raised values in that region — hence their reason 
for spreading out toward the Minnesota bomid- 
ary.""' At the same time they were appointed sole 
agents for the sale of the lands of the St. Paul and 
Sioux City Railroad in Sioux, Lyon, and Wood- 
bury counties'" — indeed, they are reported as 
having bought all the imsold lands of that 
company. 



102 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

The firm of Close Brothers and Company, which 
in 1880 kept an office at 38 Cornhill, London, 
changed its name to Close, Benson and Company 
— C. W. Benson having become a partner in the 
business. In 1881 the firm offered tenants on their 
farms the privilege of purchase after fifteen 
months' development."^ Otherwise they went right 
on constantly adding to their possessions. Besides 
maintaining an office at Le Mars, they set up an- 
other at Rock Rapids and one at Sibley in May, 
1881 — James B. Close taking charge of the latter. 

By this time the real estate interests of the com- 
pany in northwestern Iowa and southern Mimie- 
sota had become so immense and questions of 
titles, transfers, leases, and sales so delicate that 
they engaged Major J. C. Ball to devote his entire 
time and attention to their affairs. Having served 
as manager of most of the legal business of the 
Close brothers at Le Mars for the past two years, 
Mr. Ball, with an assistant, located at Sibley in 
order to apply himself to the intricacies of the 
land situation in that region. As a ''side line" 
to their expanding business, the firm had already 
purchased a complete abstract of land titles in 
Plymouth County."^ So extensive were their pur- 
chases and sales for one week in May, 1881, that, 
allowing for possible newspaper exaggeration, it 
was estimated at nearly 100,000 acres."° 



v_ 



FORMATION OF IOWA LAND COMPANY 103 

In the month of January, 1881, Close, Benson 
and Company of London sent word to the land 
commissioner of the St. Paul and Sioux City Rail- 
road that the Duke of Sutherland, Lord Stafford, 
and certain British railway magnates were making 
plans to visit the Middle West. Correspondence 
began and the manager of the tour was interceded 
with and so urgently invited to visit the Close 
colony that he finalh^ promised to journey from 
Omaha to Chicago by way of St. Paul. Late in 
May the duke with his retinue passed through 
Le Mars without leaving the train ; but at Sibley, 
the new county seat of Osceola County, the ducal 
party was met at the station by William B. Close 
and conducted on a sightseeing tour of the neigh- 
boring prairie for two hours :"^ one of the farms 
was inspected with great interest by the duke and 
his agricultural friends, ''as the plow was then 
turning soil that had never yet been touched by 
the hand of man. ' '"" 

The reason for this visit of English capitalists 
is easily explained: the Iowa Land Company, 
Limited, had been formed in London to under- 
take the land and colonization business on a very 
extensive scale under the tenantry system on the 
lands adjacent to the St. Paul and Sioux City 
Railroad; and a large sum of money, variously 
estimated at from $1,125,000 to $2,500,000 had been 



104 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

subscribed for stock, of which nearly one-half was 
taken by members of the ducal party."^ The Close 
brothers were made managers of this corporation 
which they seem to have been instrumental in 
forming. According to one source of information, 
before the title to a vast quantity of land had 
passed, the breaking teams of contractors were set 
to work in the neighborhood of Sibley ; twenty-six 
square miles of virgin soil were turned over; and 
lumber was selected for 160 houses to be erected 
and ready for tenants in the spring of 1882. 

The Duke of Sutherland, one of the wealthiest 
peers of England, was reported also as having 
bought from sixty to seventy thousand acres in 
Rock and Nobles counties in Minnesota."* Over 
sixty square miles of land in Osceola County were 
selected for the company; but inasmuch as the 
title of the Sioux City and St. Paul Railroad was 
being disputed"^ by the Chicago, Llilwaukee and 
St. Paul, and the attorneys of all the parties in- 
terested could not agree on the subject, a check for 
$160,653 was paid to the First National Bank of 
St. Paul as trustee pending the final settlement of 
the question of title. Sibley became the company's 
headquarters. Thus, it is said, with an office in 
London and offices in the chief cities of the United 
Kingdom, with a desk in the Sioux City land offices, 
represented by C. W. Slayton, the Iowa Land 



FORMATION OF IOWA LAND COMPANY 105 

Company listed on the stock exchange in London 
commanded enormous moneyed resources. A St. 
Paul newspaper could not withhold its congratula- 
tions in the following terms : 

The St. Paul chamber of coinmerce delegation, who 
extended so warm a welcome to the Duke of Suther- 
land and party, may take credit for their part; the 
St. Paul and Omaha road, who gave a special train 
for the party, may take credit for its part; the land 
commissioner of the Sioux City road who wears the 
duke's scarf pin as a trophy may take credit for his 
part, and good people of St. Paul may felicitate them- 
selves and be thankful for the enterprise, which in- 
duced this heap of British gold to a transfer from 
the bank coffers of London, and which mil be followed 
by sturdy English brain and muscle to develop a very 
important artery of St. Paul's commerce and to fur- 
ther insure a future which the sanguine can scarcely 
conceive.^^*' 

The Close brothers had the task of purchasing 
and looking after lands for the Iowa Land Com- 
pany. From this time on their operations were 
practically inseparable from those of their prin- 
cipal, although they retained their holdings in 
Crawford, Plymouth, and other counties. It was 
anticipated that they would break 40,000 acres of 
wild land in 1881; and with 150,000 acres under 
their charge, they rivalled the gigantic farming 
operations of the famed Oliver Dalrymple."^ Soon 



106 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

they were buying land near Canton, South 
Dakota/" About the middle of July the Iowa 
Land Company was reported as owning 100,000 
acres in southwestern Minnesota and northwestern 
lowa:"^ farms to the number of 120 with good 
dwelling-houses and barns were opened to be sold 
or rented on favorable terms, the managers in- 
tending to secure tenants or purchasers in Illinois 
and Wisconsin, if the farms were not disposed of 
before winter. This unexpected ''boom" met with 
a hearty reception from the Yankee pioneers of 
Sibley : 

The land broken this season will be back-set next 
fall, and thus made read}^ for seeding in the spring. 
The purpose is to put up hay on all the farms opened, 
so that those who rent and take possession of them 
during the winter will have feed for horses and cattle. 
Those who have had dealings with Close Bros., in the 
way of contracts for breaking, find them to be honor- 
able gentlemen and always ready to do what is right. 
And as James B. Close will have charge of the busi- 
ness of the Iowa Land Company, the relations of our 
people with it wall be pleasant. Osceola county is 
fortunate in the establishment of this company here, 
as its farming operations will make Sibley as live a 
to^vn as there is in Iowa, and greatly hasten the de- 
velopment of the magnificent resources of the sur- 
rounding country.^^" 

Owing to their mammoth operations in land 



FORMATION OF IOWA LAND COMPANY 107 

both for themselves and for the Iowa Land Com- 
pany, the Closes were declared to have done "more 
to help the prosperity and growth of the great 
west than any of our American people, and they 
are deserving of success. "^^^ A Sioux City news- 
paper editorial on '^Our British Tax-Payers" 
declared : 

Some idea of the magnitude of the English interests 
in Northwestern Iowa may be inferred from the taxes 
paid by Close Bros. & Co., for themselves and the in- 
vestors represented by the firm, in this county, $1,400 ; 
Plymouth county, $4,000; Sioux county, $1,600; Lyon 
county, $5,000; and in Osceola county $1,500. In the 
latter county there is beside this $10,000 taxes paid 
by the Iowa Land Company, Limited, of which the 
Duke of Sutherland is the heavy man. These figures 
have nothing to do with the amounts paid by indivi- 
dual resident owners of English birth of whom there 
are several hundred in this county and the two next 
north. As these taxes average only a little more than 
ten cents per acre, the extent of the English land in- 
terests may be reckoned.^^" 

Minnesota people were also beginning to cast 
longing eyes south across the boundary toward 
these Englishmen busily improving Iowa, and 
from general indications expected an expansion 
into Nobles County."^ Still farther away, wide- 
awake promoters of the Red River Valley of the 
North tendered the Closes special transportation 



108 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

to come and see 'Svhat real productive land is" 
and after seeing to "abandon the hog and hominy 
plains of Iowa for the wheat fields of Dakota.'"^* 
Soon the expectations of Mimiesota pioneers 
were rewarded when they learned that all the rail- 
road lands in Nobles County had been sold and 
that the Close brothers intended to open an office 
in Worthington and begin the development of their 
holdings. '^^ At the same time much remained to 
be done in Iowa. At Sibley they built a large 
brick block 128 by 80 f eet.'^' In the spring of 1882 
C. W. Benson, one of the partners, while on a 
visit to St. Paul, announced the plans of English 
capitalists for the construction of the Spirit Lake 
and Western Railroad. The Iowa Land Company, 
then reputed to be the largest foreign company 
doing business in the United States with a capital- 
ization of $5,500,000 and stock selling on the Lon- 
don exchange at a premium of twenty-five per 
cent, was projecting the route through its Osceola 
and Lyon county tracts to Sioux Falls, South 
Dakota, while some of the railroad companies were 
talking and doing nothing. Grade stakes were set 
and arrangements made in London for the rails.^" 



IX 

PROHIBITION AND ENGLISH 
IMMIGRATION 

During the early years the English settlers at 
Le Mars and vicinity were greatly agitated by the 
proposal to amend the Constitution so as to drive 
out of the State the sale and manufacture of in- 
toxicating liquor. The General Assembly in 1880 
threw a considerable scare into the first new- 
comers from England by its resolution in favor 
of the prohibitory amendment. In accordance 
with the requirement of the State Constitution 
similar action was taken at the next regular ses- 
sion of the General Assembly in 1882 ; at the same 
time provision was made gi^dng the voters an 
opportunity to declare for or against the proposal 
at a special election in June. A favorite argument 
of the ''Antis" was that the adoption of prohibi- 
tion would prevent immigration to Iowa and thus 
retard the development of the State. 

The result of the popular referendum on the 
subject on June 27, 1882, showed that the amend- 
ment lost in Plymouth County (English settlers 
not voting because they were still aliens) but car- 

109 



110 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ried the State by a good majority — thus assuring 
the disappearance of saloons in Iowa. Immediate- 
ly the question arose as to what effect this step 
was likely to have on the business of Close 
brothers. When interviewed by a newspaper re- 
porter, Fred B. Close is alleged to have stated that 
the firm w^ould probabl}^ leave the State. After- 
wards Mr. Close declared that the reporter used 
stronger language than the interview warranted. 
He said that since a large portion of the firm's 
business was done with Englishmen fresh from 
England, the amendment would likely deter many 
from coming to Le Mars; and that if this fact 
caused their business to fall off materially, the 
Close brothers might go somewhere else. But he 
did not think it at all likely that this would hap- 
pen.^""* What really occurred in consequence of 
the incident may well be told in the words of a 
Le Mars editor: 

Some anonymous penny-a-liner wrote to the Pioneer- 
Press what purported to he an interview with Fred 
B. Close of Lemars, in which the Close Bros, were 
represented as intending to pull out of Iowa, because 
of the adoption of the amendment prohibiting the 
manufacture and sale of intoxicants ; and a lot of very 
callow newspaper scribblers are making conspicuous 
donkeys of themselves by repeating with emendations, 
the alleged interview. The usually discreet Carroll 
Herald flies off at a tangent and propounds a lot of 



PEOHIBITION AND THE ENGLISH 111 

very ridiculous questions affecting the business in- 
tegrity of the firm, and demanding from the Sioux 
City Journal, categorical answer. The Journal has 
not answered, not because it cannot, but probably be- 
cause it deems the questions unworthy of notice, which 
is true, but the queries are in print, and very widely 
circulated, must receive attention. The complete reply 
to its interrogatories is that the Close Bros, have the 
entire confidence of the English Colony, which would 
not be the case had they acted other than honorably 
with their clients. . . . Their purpose of abandoning 
the state on account of the amendment or for any 
other reason, may be easily inferred from the fact 
that they continue making investments just as if there 
had been no election on June 27th. The Close Bros, 
are business men and not doctrhmires. They are cos- 
mopolitan in their ideas, and accommodate themselves 
readily to surrounding conditions. They have invest- 
ed hundreds of thousands, are still investing and are 
ready to invest more if they can see their way to get- 
ting returns for their outlay. That is all there is to 
it. They have their views on all public questions, but 
no men in Iowa, having the interests at stake they 
have, are more reticent or more modest in expressing 
them. It is about time the foolish gabble regarding 
them is stopped, for the nonsensical stuff is doing 
northwestern Iowa more harm than it is doing them.^^* 

In this connection it is well to add that as early 
as January and February, 1880, before prohibition 
was assured as a definite State policy, the Close 
brothers were aware that one trait of their 



112 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

countrymen in America was their liking for alco- 
holic beverages: so marked a drawback to the 
happiness and success of English settlers in north- 
western Iowa caused the Close brothers to em- 
phasize their caution in no uncertain terms: 

Unless a man will keep from that vice he had better 
stay in England, where he can get the drink he is used 
to, for a drunkard will no more succeed in Iowa than 
in England. We are sorry to have to state that in 
this respect English settlers have acquired a bad name, 
and are too frequently left behind by the more sober 
and steady though less intelligent German.^^° 

Needless to say, the business of the Close 
brothers was not seriously interfered with by the 
adoption of prohibition in Iowa. The new amend- 
ment to the Constitution, while in force, was not 
always well enforced; and about one year later it 
was declared void by the Iowa Supreme Court on 
the ground of unconstitutionality."^ 



X 

LATER HISTORY OF THE CLOSE 
BROTHERS 

It is not necessary here to trace the expansion 
of the Iowa Land Company into ^limiesota. The 
Closes were advertising 500,000 acres for sale in 
the summer of 1882. At the new town of Ireton 
in Sioux County they erected an elegant brick 
block."^ In the summer of the following year the 
firm bought from the St. Paul and Sioux City the 
tow^i site of Bigelow, Mimiesota, and from the 
Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul 100,000 acres in 
Pipestone County farther north.^^^ 

In 1883 they still advertised 500,000 acres for 
sale in Plymouth, Woodbury, Lyon, and Osceola 
counties in Iowa, and Nobles, Murray, and Rock 
comities in Minnesota.^^* Indeed, the Close broth- 
ers brought the hum of industry to southwestern 
Minnesota by giving contracts for the building of 
farm houses before the snows of winter came in 
1883 and even built a hotel at Pipestone.^^^ What 
they had done for Le Mars and Sibley where they 
still maintained offices, Pipestone also expected. 
In the autumn the Closes are said to have shipped 

113 



114 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

a wagon load of advertising matter to different 
parts of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin to induce 
immigrants to the region which they were pro- 
moting/^" 

In the month of February, 1884, the Close 
brothers gave up the management of the Iowa 
Land Company and the partnership known as 
Close, Benson and Company dissolved, C. W. Ben- 
son leaving it to take over the management of the 
Iowa Land Company. The three Closes then 
formed the new firm of Close Brothers and Com- 
pany; but Fred, who had charge of the business 
at Pipestone, withdrew in 1884 and became a 
resident of Sioux City/" For some months, in 
order to care for their farms and the lands of 
English investors still in their hands, James and 
William Close maintained offices at Le Mars, 
Sibley, and Pipestone; but early in 1885, to com- 
pete on more even terms with railroad and other 
land companies, the firm incorporated, set up at 
Chicago, where they have remained to this day, 
although the Closes have not kept up their con- 
nection with it all these years."^ How long they 
kept offices in Iowa or continued to own or man- 
age farms in Plymouth, Woodbury, Sioux, Osce- 
ola, and Lyon counties it is impossible to state.^^^ 

As the country settled up, the Closes gradually 
disposed of their holdings to tenants, chiefly Amer- 



LATER HISTORY OF THE CLOSES 115 

icans, whom they had started on the road to pros- 
perity. As for the Iowa Land Company, it was 
reported as doing business in Osceola Comity 
several years later, with Cecil F. Benson and K. 
D. Dmilop as active partners."" What this cor- 
poration did in that comity may be told in the 
words of local historians : 

While the Iowa Land Company operated here it 
was quite a rendezvous for young Englishmen who 
had nothing to do but spend an allowance. They gave 
Sibley the appearance of being a lively town. Horse 
racing, polo playing, fox hunting and toboggan sliding 
were the usual sports for pastime. The company sent 
agents east to look up tenants and a vast number, 
good, bad and indifferent, were brought in by their 
enterprising agents. During those years, Sibley seemed 
to have a boom, but as a lot of the floating class of 
tenants moved on, the merchants found that they were 
losing more from poor accounts than they had ever 
lost before. It was probably the hardest time the 
Sibley merchants ever experienced. The managers of 
this company were fine gentlemen and free buyers, 
as well as prompt paymasters, but many of their ten- 
ants were a damage to the town. Finally the Iowa 
Land Company closed out its interests here and moved 
to St. Paul, Minnesota, where it is still doing 
business.^" 

How much land Englishmen owned in Iowa and 
Minnesota in the spring of 1884, which date may 
be regarded as marking the zenith of their opera- 



116 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

tions in the region, was estimated by a St. Paul 
newspaper as follows : 

Along the Imes of the St. Paul & Sioux City and 
Sioux City & St. Paul, now the western division of 
the Omaha, foreign owners are more plentiful; and 
easily first in magnitude are the Close Brothers, for- 
merly of Le Mars, Iowa, but lately removed to Pipe- 
stone City, Minnesota. It is scarcely correct to call 
these gentlemen aliens, as they live in the United 
States, and are thoroughly identified with American 
interests. Their possessions foot 270,000 acres, of 
which 150,000 are Milwaukee & St. Paul in Pipestone 
county, Minn.; 30,000 from the same company in 
Osceola and Dickinson counties, Iowa; 50,000 from 
the Sioux City road in Rock and Nobles counties, 
Minn, and 40,000 from the same road in Osceola, Sioux 
and Lyon counties, Iowa. The gentlemen have many 
thousands of acres under cultivation ; have built towns, 
roads — rail and wagon — and brought to this country 
thousands of Britons. The following table shows the 
total of alien ownership, those owning more than 5000 
acres being designated separately :^*^ 

Acres 

CLOSE BROTHERS, ENGLAND 270,000 

SYKES & HUGHES, ENGLAND 85,000 

MARQUIS DE MORES, FRANCE 16,000 

EINLAY DUN ET AL, ENGLAND 25,000 

C. M BEACH, LONDON 10,000 

WILLIAM JOHNSTON, LIVERPOOL 7,000 

EDWARD PAUL, LIVERPOOL 6,000 

OTHER OWNERS (leSS THAN 5,000 ACRES EACh) 40,380 
GRAND TOTAL 459,380 



LATER HISTORY OF THE CLOSES 117 

That the accumulation by foreigners of vast 
quantities of American land had begun to agitate 
the citizens of the country, especially the Anglo- 
phobes, is clear from the fact that bills were in- 
troduced in Congress in 1884 to restrict or prevent 
the acquisition of public lands by these ''leviathan 
squatters". Two members of Congress addressed 
their colleagues on the subject and expressed their 
alarm at the condition of things by pointing out 
in almost identical terms that these foreigners had 
bought up nearly 21,000,000 acres of land within 
the past few years/*^ There seems, however, to 
have been little opposition to the English land 
holders in Iowa. 

Congressmen were asked if they did not tremble 
for the future when they saw that subjects of the 
British Empire in only thirty-two different tracts 
owTied an area equal to one-fourth the size of the 
British Isles. Nothing, however, was done at this 
time to check the absorption of vast quantities of 
land by foreigners or interfere with the growth of 
large landed estates; nor did Congress take steps 
to aid the horde of settlers who alleged they had 
crowded to the frontier only to find themselves 
pitted in a desperate struggle against corporate 
greed and combined foreign capital. 

It may also be recorded in this connection that 
the Closes formed the first Kansas Land Company 
and bought about 100,000 acres in Trego County, 



118 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Kansas. In a letter from London, dated Novem- 
ber 30, 1921, William B. Close writes: 

There had been rain for three years before we 
bought these lands, and we sold most of them off at 
double the price within a year; but unfortunately a 
period of drought set in and the lands, being sold on 
time, reverted to our Company. We also bought an- 
other 100,000 acres on the Atchison Road in Kansas, 
near Colorado, and another 100,000 of beautiful land 
in the Panhandle of Texas. But unfortunately a 
period of drought set in, coinciding with the period 
of financial depression in the United States, and for 
a number of years there was no demand for these 
lands, and heavy taxes were paid each year, so that 
when a demand began to spring up, our friends here 
urged us to sell, get what money we could back out 
of the investment, and stop paying taxes. Had these 
lands been held for a year longer when the secrets 
of dry farming were being discovered, there would 
have been a large fortune waiting for the investment 
instead of which we did not get the whole of our 
money back. 

At Chicago it appears that Close Brothers and 
Company developed a large and very successful 
farm loan business, borrowing money in England 
at from four to five per cent in those days and 
realizing from six and one-half to seven per cent 
net on their loans in this country. They had other 
enterprises as well, including an irrigation pro- 
ject at Lamar, Colorado, and the building of the 



LATER HISTORY OF THE CLOSES 119 

White Pass and Yukon Railway in Alaska, which 
they financed from London. 

A brief biographical statement about the four 
brothers who did so much to promote the settle- 
ment and up-building of northwestern Iowa will 
not be out of place here. The tragic end of Fred- 
erick Brooks Close occurred on the polo grounds 
at Sioux City, in June, 1890. James Brooks Close 
died on July 31, 1910. John Brooks Close, who 
never entered the firm but supplied it with capital, 
died on March 20, 1914. William Brooks Close, 
the sole survivor of the original partnership, was 
still enjoying good health, except for the effects 
of an operation and influenza from which he was 
recovering in a London hospital, when he wrote 
on November 30, 1921. 



XI 

CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE 

Despite their enthusiasm over the wonderful 
jn-omise of the section of the State which they 
were promoting, the Close brothers did not im- 
agine or prophesy that forty years later Plymouth 
and Sioux counties together would lead Iowa, the 
garden spot of the Mississippi Valley, in the value 
of land, farm buildings, machinery, and live stock ; 
stand first in the value and production of farm 
crops; and tower high in agriculture as perhaps 
the richest of the counties of the whole United 
States."* 

The Closes made no mistake when in 1880 they 
advertised the fertility of the soil in this region. 
They were convinced that grasshoppers alone had 
discouraged agricultural industry in/ the decade 
just past; and they invested in the prairie lands 
of these newer counties on the chance that the 
scourge was at an end. Time proved that in the 
face of the risks which they had assumed they and 
their friends were wise in trying their hand at 
agriculture and animal husbandry in the counties 
of northwestern Iowa. 

120 



CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE 121 

In Garfield Township, Plymouth County, near 
the present town of Kingsley, the Closes anticipat- 
ed the coming of the Chicago and Northwestern 
Railroad and ventured to buy their first large tract 
in the autumn of 1878, the same year in which 
they had begun operations in Crawford County. 
The following spring saw much of the prairie sod 
broken for cultivation, some thirty odd houses 
built on as many one hundred and sixty acre farms, 
and tenants procured for most of them."^ Early 
in 1881 a New Jersey editor who had met the 
brothers at Sioux City informed his readers that 
the Closes owned 28,000 acres in the county, of 
which they had more than 11,000 under the plow; 
besides they had made an actual outlay of $100,000, 
having built 150 houses at an average cost of $350 
each, and expected to break 15,000 acres during 
the year and obtain one hundred renters on favor- 
able terms. The editor's conclusion that these 
young Englishmen showed ^^considerable enter- 
prise" and a great amount of ^' cheek" was capital- 
ized at Le Mars in the following retort: 

Jes' so, jes' so. And since the Jarsey scribe met 
them in Sioux City, the Close Bros., have been cheeky 
enough to purchase 20,000 acres more in Lyon county, 
some forty miles north of here. They have had the 
cheek to advertise for teams to break an additional 
18,000 acres to that spoken of above. They had the 
cheek to give a contract the other day to one of our 
builders for the erection of 75 more dwelling houses. 



122 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

and have actually the cheek to invite the struggling 
and sturdy young farmers of New Jersey (they have 
no prejudice you see against foreigners) to purchase 
those farms thus improved, or rent them on most 
favorable terms. They have the cheek to invest hun- 
dreds of thousands of dollars in actual improvements, 
and the cheek to believe the investment a good one. 
Yes, they have "a great amount of cheek.""® 

How many houses and outbuildings the Closes 
had constructed on their owtl farms and others 
throughout northwestern Iowa it is impossible 
even to estimate. For a number of years S. B. 
Sawyer, Wm. McKay, and George Warner, build- 
ers and contractors, seem to have been busy follow- 
ing the pace set by the Close brothers in their pur- 
chase of lands. Whenever new farms were laid 
out, these artisans made bids and received con- 
tracts to put up the necessary buildings in Ply- 
mouth, Woodbur}^ Sioux, Lyon, and Osceola 
counties. In June, 1881, upwards of two hundred 
houses of uniform size and style and as many 
barns were reported in course of construction, 
ninety alone being under way in Osceola and Lyon 
counties to be completed for occupancy in the 
autumn or spring. Although the first dwellings 
were plastered, some of the later ones were ceiled 
with matched lumber and after January, 1882, 
their dimensions were enlarged. 



CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE 123 

The Close brothers are credited with having 
made the first and greatest improvement in Osceola 
Comity when in January, 1882, they had com- 
pleted about one hundred houses in Viola, Wilson, 
Holman, Gilman, and Goewey townships."' This 
number was only a starter and was subsequently 
very much increased. In Lyon County, Where 
they managed over 20,000 acres, one-half of which 
was broken and seeded in the spring of 1881, the 
Closes built over 100 houses with barns, and dur- 
ing this year they are said to have spent $100,000 
with Lyon Comity merchants, carpenters, black- 
smiths, and common laborers."^ In Sioux County 
they managed over 46,000 acres, an area equiva- 
lent to two whole towTiships, of which probably 
7000 acres were brought imder cultivation in 1881 
and divided into about sixty farms.""" 

Some idea of the firm's activity as the creator 
of homesteads may be gathered from a list of its 
accomplishments in five counties in the year 1881 : 
there were 25,777 acres broken up, 14,318 acres 
cultivated, 24,211 acres purchased, 319 houses 
built, 318 barns, 142 granaries, 122 corncribs, and 
70 wells dug. Later years witnessed a greatly in- 
creased showing in the same direction: a house, 
barn, cribs, and other improvements arose on 
every quarter of a section controlled by the Close 
brothers."" 



124 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Besides carpenters, masons, and plasterers, 
laborers with teams and plows had no dearth of 
work for several spring seasons: breaking the 
virgin prairie or shallow plowing of the tough sod 
became their principal occuiDation for many years 
to come. In 1881, a typical year, contracts were 
let for 12,000 acres in Plymouth County at $2.25 
per acre and 30,000 acres in Lyon, Sioux, and 
Osceola counties^^^ — at the end of the year about 
26,000 acres having been actually broken up. Not 
only professional "breakers" but also tenants 
were engaged for this important w^ork. 

In April, 1881, the Close brothers wanted 180 
farmers as tenants on unbroken farms. After 
breaking the sod at the usual rate of $2.25 per 
acre and sowing it to flax, the seed being supplied 
free by the firm and half of the threshing bill paid 
later, the settler divided his first year's crop on 
equal shares with the Closes. In this way settlers 
ran no risk, were assured of wages and free house 
rent, and had a chance to look around and choose 
good permanent locations for future farming 
operations.^^^ Furthermore, when the flax was 
harvested, the firm paid a good price for ''back 
setting", that is, plowing deeply the flax stubble 
or rotted broken prairie sod in preparation for 
the next year's planting of corn and wheat, cereals 
not nearly so exhausting to the soil as flax. 



CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE 125 

Another characteristic feature of the opening 
of a new country was tree planting on the farms. 
George H. Wright, called the horti-agriculturist 
of Sioux City, at various times obtained contracts 
to set out thousands of trees upon the Close and 
other lands throughout northwestern Iowa: early 
in 1881 alone he was engaged to plant 325 acres of 
trees, and a little later 400 acres more. His first 
work consisted of planting principally in the 
southeastern part of Plymouth Comity and the 
northeastern corner of Woodbury County. The 
trees planted were mostly cottonwood and elm, 
with a liberal sprinkling of ash, box-elder, and 
maple. The same nursery man closed a contract 
to plant one thousand acres of trees in the spring 
of 1882."^ 

Various reasons may be ascribed for this kind 
of activity. The whole region was treeless prairie 
except for a little timber along the streams. 
Groves were, therefore, planted early, several 
acres on every farm, to supply not only the fuel 
demands of the inhabitants as soon as possible but 
also for shade and for protection as windbreaks 
in winter for man and beast. So rapid was the 
growth of the softwood varieties that a few years 
sufficed to effect the objects desired. Moreover, 
the State legislature had stimulated the culture of 
forest trees by farmers by the passage of a law 



126 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

providing that for every acre planted to trees $100 
be deducted from the taxable value of the farm 
for ten years from the time of planting, thus help- 
ing to reduce taxes.^^* 

Through their untiring energy and perseverance 
the Close brothers succeeded in attracting not only 
a large number of their countrymen to locate on 
farms of their own but also hundreds of tenants 
to work on the farms belonging to their firm and 
to the Iowa Land Company of London. In the 
years 1880 and 1881 the Close farms could have 
been let twice over, a fact to which a Le Mars 
editor alluded as 'landlordism on business prin- 
ciples — landlordism active, enterprising and trot- 
ting about. "^^■'' By judicious advertising the Closes 
found it easy to procure renters, as may be guessed 
from the following newspaper story: 

These improved farms will be rented to enterpris- 
ing and thrifty farmers, either for cash rent, or a 
share of the crop. When desired seed will be fur- 
nished, and in some cases cows and stock, and the 
renter given an opportunity to pay for the same in 
breaking or other work, at a good price for his labor. 
Each farm or quarter section is provided with a 
well-built house and all necessary farm buildings, and 
all that is required by the renter is farming imple- 
ments sufficient to plant and harvest his crops. These 
farms, scattered throughout the several counties above 
alluded to, comprise some of the most desirable 



CONTRIBUTIONS TO AGRICULTURE 127 

farming lands on the American continent or in the 
world. The country is well watered and adapted to 
the growth of corn, wheat, oats, barley, rye, flax and 
in fact all the cereal crops known to the temperate 
zone. For grazing and dairying purposes the country 
is unparalleled, which features will, in the near future, 
assume an important place in the agricultural achieve- 
ments of the country. The lands are all within easy 
reach of railroads and markets ; good schools abound, 
and every advantage in fact is vouchsafed to the 
settler that are afforded in the older settled states 
of the Union. Situated in a climate proverbially 
healthy, free from all malarial taint, and in a latitude 
free from the severe rigors of winter and the melting 
rays of the smnmer sun, it is a "land of promise'* 
to the poor, and to the rich an investment that will 
return ten fold.^^^ 

Not counting the farms already occupied, the 
Closes had one hundred to let early in 1881. Of 
the 319 farms opened in 1881 only about thirty 
remained unoccupied in February, 1882, and these 
were soon disposed of.^" The tenants were chiefly 
Americans, although some Hollanders took ad- 
vantage of the opportunity to devote themselves 
to agriculture. Indeed, a considerable Dutch 
colony had been established in Sioux County, the 
firm of Richardson and Hospers at Le Mars hav- 
ing busily directed the tide of Dutch immigration 
to Sioux and Plymouth counties for several 
years.'"' These people came with little of the 



128 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

world's goods; they familiarized themselves with 
the country, crops, markets, and prices ; and event- 
ually many of them bought farms from the Closes. 
So numerous were the holdings controlled by 
the Closes that stewards were appointed to super- 
intend about forty farms each/'" Thus, John 
Hopkinson received an appointment to look after 
the farms in Lyon and Osceola counties. At har- 
vest and threshing time especially, the steward's 
vigilance in the interest of his employers was very 
much needed. Sometimes the Close brothers, in 
order to protect themselves as well as their ten- 
ants, procured extra labor — as shown by their 
advertisement in the autumn of 1883 for three 
hundred additional hands to help harvest and care 
for crops on Sioux County farms.^^° 



XII 

IMMIGRANT FARMERS IN THE ENGLISH 

COLONY 

There can be no question but that the immigra- 
tion of Englishmen to the counties so frequently 
named in these pages gave business and agricul- 
ture a new impetus in northwestern Iowa. The 
system whereby the Close brothers cooperated 
with their tenants and the English settlers, after 
a little over two years of experimentation, proved 
remunerative to all concerned, if one may believe 
the testimony of the St. Paul press in 1881 : 

Probably the safest, and consequently on the aver- 
age, the most remunerative kind of agricultural life 
is a combination of all, or what is called mixed farm- 
ing. In this, stock raising, wheat culture, and the 
production of other grains are carried on, either 
simultaneously or hi succession .... A remarkable 
instance of what can, in this manner, be accomplished, 
is afforded by the Close brothers; who founded the 
now famous Close colony, near Lemars in northwest- 
ern Iowa. These young Englishmen, of high social 
standing, began three years ago, the experiment of 
farming on a large scale. At first controlling but 
moderate capital, they now have 300,000 acres in 
their enterprise. 

129 



130 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

The colony is a sort of community, into which each 
one who enters must bring at least $2,500 and many 
do bring several times that amount. Tliis is, of course, 
private property. There is nothing socialistic in their 
mutual relations. Their astonishing growth in wealth 
is one of the w^onders of the west. But it is not their 
social standing or conununity regulations which con- 
stitutes the central interest of this colony. That lies 
in the fact that they have proved beyond a doubt that 
modest capital, invested in this region, with industry 
and intelligence, will in a life-time multiply into 
wealth. The estimates of one who has visited this 
region may contain minor errors, but their conclu- 
sions are doubtless substantially correct. On a capital 
of $2,500, invested in agriculture the return is equiva- 
lent to 54 per cent, at the end of two years. The 
raising of stock i)romises a profit, calculated from 
actual experience, of nearly 100 per cent in three 
years. Other industries are equally remunerative; 
and by combining them, it can readilj^ be seen that 
an active intelligent man can find here the road to 
competence if not to w^ealth. Small capitalists under- 
stand this; and already a contract has been let for 
the erection of one hundred houses this season in this 
colony, wdth prospect that the number Avill be doubled. 
Looking at such instances of unexampled prosperity, 
it cannot be questioned that .... the man who has 
enough for a start in life, in casting about him for 
the most promising opening, can scarcely do better 
than to follow the terse maxim of the Chautauqua sage. 
For him, it means comfort, health, happiness and 
wealth. For the great commonwealth which invites 



IMMIGRANT FARMERS 131 

him it means internal development, intelligent citizens, 
and the leading place upon the future roll of States.^^^ 

How extensively Englishmen of the better class 
applied themselves to grain farming and stock 
raising it is difficult to say: in February, 1881, 
they already owned thousands of w^ell improved 
acres, had expended over $500,000 in Phinouth 
County, and many had ample capital in reserve 
for any necessary requirements. And the Closes 
had then only begun to bring in 'Hhe wealth and 
brawn of merrie England to this garden spot". 
Members of the Close colony worked their own 
farms, instead of letting them to tenants, hiring 
such labor as they required at an average for the 
whole year of about $17.50 a month and board. 
Contract work by the piece was also largely em- 
ployed, and labor was plentiful. 

The interesting feature about the little city of 
Le Mars that early gained a somewhat exaggerated 
notoriety throughout the United States and Eng- 
land was that it lay at "the center of a colony of 
500 wealthy Englishmen, many of them of noble 
blood, who live like veritable lords and spend from 
$500 to $600 a month for their common living ex- 
penses.""^ A colony of such generous livers was 
an advantage to the town, and so it grew rapidly. 
Eighteen miles southeast of Le Mars at Quom, 
upon the West Fork of the Little Sioux River, 



132 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

lived William B. Close. He and W. Roylance 
Court, Jr., owTied a two thousand acre stock farm, 
with first class buildings and barns, and two sheep 
cotes each one hundred feet long. With the help 
of seven pupils ^'growing up with the country", 
they cared for 2000 sheep, graded in from thor- 
oughbred Cotswolds, and a herd of hundreds of 
Shorthorn grade cattle. The special stock farm 
of James and Fred Close, also assisted by seven 
pupils under tuition, consisted of 960 acres, a 
three-story frame residence, fine stabling for thirty 
horses, bams, sheds, storage for hay and grain, 
and so on: their live stock numbered 800 sheep, 
including 100 thoroughbred Leicesters, bucks and 
ewes, also 320 head of cattle, and over 200 Berk- 
shire and Poland China hogs. The Closes an- 
nounced that the returns from their three stock 
farms were as large as those from wheat, and 
surer, though slower, although more capital was 
needed to carry on the business.""®^ 

The English colonists seem to have gone exten- 
sively into sheep raising. In May, 1880, the Hon. 
Captain Reynolds Moreton bought an improved 
farm of 960 acres one and one-half miles north- 
west of Le Mars. Here he quickly put up the 
finest improvements in the country, such as a two- 
story seventeen-room house which it was alleged 
cost $20,000 and tw^o commodious bams with hav 



IMMIGRANT FARMERS 133 



mows, besides corncribs, cattle yards, pigpens, 
and other improvements. He owned herds of 
cattle and hogs at Dromore Farm numbering two 
hundred each, and Cotswold, Oxford Down, and 
Manchester Down sheep, including twenty-five 
bucks imported from England/^* Many of the 
English settlers found a good run for sheep along 
the bluffs near the larger streams, such as the fine 
breezy bluffs of the Big Sioux River. In a letter 
published in England in 1879, William B. Close 
made a long statement, the first and last para- 
graphs of which read as follows : 

I cannot imagine more perfect runs for sheep than 
those afforded by the Bluffs near the larger streams 
and rivers. These bluff lands, too rolling and hilly 
for the purpose of cultivation, are covered with the 
same growth of grass described in my last letter, and 
closely resemble the *' downs" in this country, so well 
suited to sheep. Sheep are remarkably free from dis- 
eases, and foot-rot is practically unknown, as the sheep 
have always dry ground under them. As I have only 
had sheep one year, I will give the experience of some 
farmers from Holstein, who came over in '74 with a 
few hundred pounds each, and are now the most well- 
to-do of their class in their county, Crawford. Hav- 
ing been brought up as shepherds, and to the business 
of raising and fattening sheep for the Hamburgh- 
London market, they have given their attention ex- 
clusively to sheep farming. They preferred Cots- 
wolds to other breeds of sheep, as affording both good 



134 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

wool and mutton. Before investing in sheep myself, 
I investigated their operations, and can vouch that 
the figures I give below do not overstate their 
success. . . . 

It will thus be seen how very profitable sheep can 
be made to be with those who know how to tend 
them. Apart from their fetching a good price for 
mutton, wool is sold in Chicago at about the same 
price it realises in England, and yet the cost of keep- 
ing sheep is almost nil in Iowa as compared with the 
cost of keeping them in this country.^^^ 

Because the winter of 1880-1881 proved to be 
exceptionally severe and some English farmers 
like the Hon. A. F. Sugden in Arlington Town- 
ship, Woodbury County, suffered the loss of hun- 
dreds of sheep in blizzards and snowdrifts. Captain 
Moreton declared this first misfortune would teach 
Englishmen to make ample preparation for feed- 
ing and caring for their stock by putting up ad- 
equate shelter against storms. Of twelve thousand 
sheep owned by the colonists, seven thousand pro- 
duced a clip of w^ool much better than in States 
farther east. Despite losses, substantial profit 
attended the colony's operations during the first 
year or two, and at least one observer concluded 
that '^ every one is or ought to be a richer man for 
having gone to Le Mars.""® 

In the spring of 1881 the report spread far and 
wide that nothing but success had crowned the 



IMMIGRANT FARMERS 135 

English colony at Le Mars. One writer"^ in Eng- 
land asserted that whenever perils threatened it, 
such as locusts, drought, storms, or falling prices 
for wheat, he hoped that the ability and courage 
which had served the colonists thus far would 
again avail them. '^lowa", he declared, ^'relies 
on the diversity of its products, and already the 
colonists are devoting their attention to cattle and 
sheep rather than to wheat." Mixed farming or 
diversified agriculture, begun with modest capital 
and continued with industry and intelligence, 
promised to make the patient farmer wealthy. 

As the counties of northwestern Iowa then la}^ 
upon the edge of the open range or cattle ranch 
country, one advantage to stock men was the fact 
that the "herd law" permitted stock to rmi at 
large under the care of herders during the spring 
and summer. There being no fences, a boy with 
a pony and dogs could take care of five or six 
hundred head of cattle or 1500 sheep for five dol- 
lars a month.^^^ That this region long remained 
open to such a custom is doubtful since the coun- 
try improved and filled up rapidly with settlers, 
fences enclosed cultivated fields, and prairie grass 
became scarcer for general grazing purposes. 

Dairying seems to have appealed to some of the 
immigrants as may be gathered from a news item : 

Mrs. Col. Fenton brought to town fifty pounds of 



136 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

butter, which she sold to Miller & Co., the grocers, for 
twenty-one cents per pound. The only thing particu- 
larly worthy of note about this transaction is the :fect 
that this lot of butter was the first manufactured for 
sale in the English colony. The butter was of prime 
quality.^®^ 

Colonel James Fenton, one of the many Scotch- 
men of the colony, owned a thousand acre farm in 
Henry Township, Plymouth County, and early 
stocked it with thoroughbred imported cattle and 
well-bred calves and heifers selected from the best 
Shorthorn and Hereford herds in the State, thus 
making his herd at Carlton Stock Farm one of the 
most valuable in the whole countryside. James 
Birr ell Nicholson, another Scotchman, with the 
aid of his sons conducted a Shorthorn and Poland 
China farm of five thousand acres."" 

James B. Warren and G. C. Maclagan (the lat- 
ter also a Scotchman) purchased a splendid two 
hundred acre stock farm just west of Le Mars, 
known as Floyd Farm, which they sold later to 
the Hon. Ronald Jervis and M. R. Margesson ; and 
not far away W. McOran Campbell of Tulliche- 
wan Castle, Dumbartonshire, Scotland, arrived a 
little later to look after a famous herd of Polled 
Angus on a thousand acre farm which he called 
the Inchinnoch. The Paulton brothers, who lived 
at or near Orange City for one year, bought a 



IMMIGRANT FARMERS 137 

place two and one-half miles east of Le Mars in 
1881. Arthur Gee owned Westbourne Farm. Jack 
Wakefield spent his time raising cattle near Seney. 
Alfred Currie Colledge and J. H. Preston bought 
a two hmidred and twenty-three acre farm four 
miles south of Le Mars and named it Prestledge. 
A. R. T. Dent (a son of Lady Dent) and A. Lang- 
ley also ran a '' plantation"; while A. W. Moore 
bought five hundred acres of the Close brothers 
near Correctionville. G. Garnett and H. Rickards 
owned Garrickdale Farm and George E. Ward 
engaged especially in the breeding and importing 
of Shorthorn cattle near Hawarden ; while H. Hill- 
yard and Charles Kay farmed near Ireton. A 
dozen miles or so southeast of Sioux City Captain 
Barlow of Manchester raised a large establishment 
which is still known as Barlow Hall. Herbert 
Cope owned Gypsy Hill Farm in Washington 
Township and Troscoed just west of Le Mars."^ 
The practice of naming farms was introduced into 
the country by British settlers, and it was not un- 
common for letters to come to the United States 
from England addressed to such farms without 
the name of the post office.^" 

So greatly did the English and Scotch colonists 
interest themselves in blooded stock that the Close 
brothers, James Fenton, Colledge and Preston, 
Lord Hobart, Captain Moreton, and Reginald 



138 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Moreton at different times won prizes and pre- 
miums at the comity fair on horses, cattle, sheep, 
and poultry."^ The new settlers took pride in such 
matters and were constantly importing thorough- 
breds from England. Thus, William B. Close ob- 
tained for the Albion stables Elsham, reputed to 
be the highest bred stallion in Iowa in his day. 
Bought by Frank C. Cobden from Edmund Tatter- 
sall, the winner of more Derbys than any other 
man, this animal was described as follows: 

He is as highly bred an anmial as can be found any- 
where, and a perfect beauty. He is a bay and stands 
sixteen hands high, weighs eleven hundred, and has 
every point of equine excellence known to horsemen. 
He was sired by Knowsley (by Stockwell out of Gen 
Peel's dam) out of Violet (by Voltiguer-Garland by 
Langar), a pedigree which old whips appreciate. But 
Elsham needs no famous ancestry to win admiration, 
for a mere glance at him shows every inch a horse, 
and all that a horse should be.^^* 

It was at Sioux City that Elsham won a first 
prize as the best thoroughbred and another for 
the best get of five colts. 

Coach horses also made their appearance; but 
running horses naturally enough came to be the 
special concern of the yomiger members of the 
colony. The profits of farming were all well 
enough, but dear to ever}^ English heart were out- 
door sports. Fond of racing by temperament and 



IMMIGRANT FARMERS 139 

training, the physically fit, athletic, vigorous type 
of Britisher found the taste of cowboy life upon 
the edge of the free range cattle country just what 
he wanted for his favorite recreation was usually 
riding. Poultney Bigelow, the famous journalist, 
told of his visit to the English colony at Le Mars 
and pictured the life there in glowing terms : 

The young men who make up this community are, 
for the most part, graduates of Oxford or Cam- 
bridge.^" On one farm I met two tall and handsome 
young farmers whose uncle had been a distinguished 
member of Parliament. The last time I had seen them 
was in a London drawing-room. This time they 
tramped me through the mud and manure of the barn- 
yard to show me some newly bought stock. They 
were boarding with a Dutch farmer at three dollars 
per week in order to learn practical farming. Both 
were thoroughly contented, and looking forward to 
the future with pleasure. 

Another young farmer whom I noticed on horse- 
back with top-boots, flannel shirt, sombrero, and belt- 
knife, was pointed out to me as the grandson of the 
author of Paley's Theology. He was attending a 
cattle auction at Le ISIars, Iowa. 

There, too, was a son of Thomas Bayley Potter, the 
distinguished honorary secretar}^ of the Cobden Club, 
and M. P. for Eochdale, who had come out onl}^ to 
take a look at the place, but who so fell in love witii 
the life that he decided to invest. One had been an 
admiral in the royal navv', another had been connected 
with a Shanghai bank. There was a brother to Lord 



140 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Ducie, not to speak of future baronets, viscounts, and 
honorables. These young men had all been attracted 
here by their love of a free, active life, and the knowl- 
edge that they would enter a society congenial to their 
tastes and early associations .... 

They have the very best ground for fox hunting in 
the world — a rolling prairie with a creek here and 
there. Every colonist makes it his chief care, after 
buying his farm, to breed a good hunter for the 
steeple-chases. They have regular meets for fox or 
''paper" hunts, as the case may be. They last year 
opened a racing track, and wound up the races with 
a grand ball.^^® 



XIII 
FARM PUPILS IN THE ENGLISH COLONY 

During his visit to England in 1880, it is said, 
William B. Close had a conference with the 
famous Commoner, John Bright, and gained his 
support for a scheme which had '^ happily suggest- 
ed itself to the Closes" : they determined to accept 
young men as farm pupils for a fixed compensa- 
tion, just as in England young men were taken 
into a barrister's office or chambers/" And so the 
Closes undertook to receive on their own stock 
farms a certain number of newcomers, show them 
all they themselves had done, and help them to 
avoid pitfalls in their dealings with local farmers 
and land agents until they were ready and able to 
make a start for themselves."^ 

These young "gentleman" pupils, according to 
an eye-witness, were made to plow, drive cattle, 
and perform every sort of farm labor/"'' At the 
end of a year they were presumed to be introduced 
to the mysteries of western farming and qualified 
to buy land for themselves and '* employ one or 
two experienced hands to look after their affairs. ' ' 

Generally speaking, "the young gentleman em- 

141 



142 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

igrant", a product peculiar to England, had two 
courses open upon arrival in Iowa : either he could 
hire out to the ordinary American farmer for his 
keep and possibly a small wage from the start ; or 
he could "board in the family of people of his own 
social grade and education and have much the 
same comforts and refinements he would have at 
home, say in a farm-house of the better class or 
in a quiet country vicarage, with the social ad- 
vantages pertaining to that style of life."'^° For 
an American it is not difficult to judge which alter- 
native appealed to a member of the English 
*' gentleman" class. 

Early in 1881 the Closes were reported as hav- 
ing some three hundred boys under tuition for 
farming or stock raising. However exaggerated 
that newspaper statement may be, Robert Benson 
of London testified that the system had on the 
whole worked much better than could have been 
expected, "considering that many of the new- 
comers came out with somewhat extravagant no- 
tions, and were as ignorant of how to hold their 
own in matters of business as they were of prac- 
tical farming.""^ In a letter penned from Eng- 
land in 1921 William B. Close writes of the young 
men who came to Le Mars : 

I offered for the sum of £25 to give all advice in 
England as to going out ; to get cheap first-class trans- 



FARM PUPILS 143 

portation by the White Star Line (and I may mention 
the rate was £12 in those days) ; that my brothers 
Fred and James would meet the newcomer at Le Mars, 
find him a place on a farm where he could learn some- 
thing about the conditions in the country ; and to buy 
160 acres of land for him without any commission if 
required, engaging to see that he got good land and 
title. 

I was young and I did not know what I was doing, 
for although we had some splendid fellows join us, 
yet a number of parents seized the opportunity of 
loading on to us sons and relatives that were an em- 
barrassment to them here, and who never would make 
good, so we had our hands full, as you may imagine. 
In addition we took some pupils on a stock farm we 
had, but never had any trouble with those boys. 
Amongst others who came there was Almeric Paget, 
now Lord Queenborough, who married Miss Whitney 
of New York, William Farquhar, Sir Basil Thomp- 
son, and others. 

Some of the £25 boys behaved very badly indeed. 
They got money from their parents, spent it in riotous 
living, and then to shield themselves, wrote home that 
Close Brothers had invested their money and lost it. 
A Bishop 's son was the worst among them ! The con- 
sequence was that I found that stories affecting our 
credit were being spread about in England. I had 
great difficulty in hunting up the source of these 
stories, and we had an unhappy time. The Field 
Newspaper having heard some of these rumours, and 
doubting anyone of our standing could be doing what 
rmnours said we were doing, sent out a correspondent 



144 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

of theirs who knew the West of America, Mr. Towai- 
send who wrote for their paper as ' ' St. Karnes ' '. He 
arrived at Le Mars one day without disclosing his 
identity. He mixed with the boys at the Club, and 
he asked about Close Brothers, but could get nothing 
definite. He spent two weeks in trying to follow up 
any clew as to our not having acted fairly with the 
boys. I did not even know he was there making in- 
quiries, when one day he walked into our office, asked 
to see me, told me who he was, told me the reason he 
had come, and said he could find not a single thing to 
back up the wicked rumours that had been spread in 
England by those two or three wretched boys, and he 
wrote a long article to the Field describing the whole 
colony, and saying that if he formed a colony as he 
thought he might, he would follow on the precise lines 
of Close Brothers and Company. 

S. Nugent Townshend, the gentleman referred to 
by Mr. Close had come from southeastern Kansas 
''rather prepossessed than otherwise against the 
Le ^lars settlement, and prepared to pity the 
young fellows ' ' ; but he left it ' ' envying them their 
good fortune and their surroundings". In cor- 
respondence despatched to England he described 
the system as he encountered it on the farm per- 
haps most noted for its pupils, or "pups" as they 
were called by the Americans: 

Captain Moreton is a father to the Colony, a good 
religious man, with great influence over all the young 
fellows. He farms about one thousand acres near the 



FARM PUPILS 145 

town, and has twenty-two young fellows with him, on 
the same principle as the Close pupils, and these 
Moreton boys are taken specially good care of; but, 
of course, admission to the captain's establishment is 
not an easy matter to procure. His boys do all the 
work of the farm. Lord Hobart, when I was there, 
was mowing, assisted by two of Lord St. Vincent's 
sons, and the hon. captain w^as feeding a thrashing 
machine. It was hot, but everyone looked happy, even 
young Moreton, who was firing and driving the steam 
engine. And again the picnic aspect, despite the real 
hard and remunerative work, struck me irresistably. 
I had a long chat with Capt. Moreton on new be- 
ginners in the United States, and he said half the 
breakdowns were in consequence of drink and bad 
food. No young English gentleman could work hard 
on a diet of beans and bacon, such as he gets in the 
house of the Western American farmer. So the 
captain keeps a generous table, and his boys are 
certainly a credit to his system; clear-eyed, bronzed, 
and muscular, in the highest health and spirits. How 
much more sensible and useful lives they live here 
than they would do if at home."- 

Strange as it may seem to Americans to-day, 
vacancies for boarders and pupils on some of the 
best farms in the English colony were widely ad- 
vertised in the old country. One pamphlet opens 
with Mr. Townshend's pleasant picture of the 
landscape around Le Mars: 

English farm-houses dot hill-sides near and far; a 
few poplar-like cottonwood trees grow well as shade 



146 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

and shelter for these homesteads; and on the gentle 
hills to the north, surrounded by large steadings, heavy 
clustering clumps of cottonwood, and splendidly 
farmed fields, dominates the residence of the Hon. 
Capt. Moreton (brother to the Earl of Ducie) . . . /^^ 

But even from this pleasant scene, where Lord 
Harris was expected in a few days to revive the high- 
est standard of cricket, I must go and trot westward. 

Farm after farm — this English, that English, the 
next English — we pass, and at length draw bridle 
at the end of twenty miles, to find ourselves at the 
door of the wonderfully comfortable house of Mr. 
Wliite Marsh. We had driven through hay to the 
horse's knees on this property for some time; fairly 
good looking sheep dotted the hill some half-a-mile 
off, and everything had the air of solidity and com- 
fort so pleasing and unusual to see in a new State. 
Mr. White Marsh was then an absentee; so on the 
backward trail we put up at his neighbour's, Messrs. 
Eller, who, with Mr. De Moleyns, had asked us to 
dinner. English servants, English cooking, and thor- 
ough English neatness and cleanliness characterised 
this property also. The Messrs. Eller had adopted 
the Close system of leasing for one year, on share of 
produce, such of their land as they were not easily 
able to work themselves at first; and this plan is 
certainly a very commendable one. But now this letter 
has run its full descriptive course, a course the length 
of which can only be justified by the fact that it will 
interest at least twelve hundred parents^^* of six hun- 
dred of some of the finest and noblest boys in or out 
of England. Very few indeed — not more than 1 



FARM PUPILS 147 

per cent. — "by the wayside fell and perished" in 
Le Mars colony. I will not exactly say that the 
Messrs. Close have selected the place where most 
money is to be made at corn-growing and cattle-fat- 
tening, and their move further north is, in my opinion, 
a move in the wrong direction, for the winters are 
cruelly severe here as it is ; but I will say that money 
can be made, and pleasantly made, and 20 per cent, 
can fairly be expected to be realised on the original 
investment after three or four years here. The climate 
is healthy for man and beast."^ 

The interesting pamphlet from which the above 
quotation is taken fails to name the English gentle- 
men who desired pupils, but quotes at length from 
their letters giving the necessary particulars for 
the enlightenment of parents and sons in England. 
One stock farmer wrote: 

My house is a wooden one, as almost all houses are 
here, whether large or small. I have two sitting 
rooms, seven bedrooms, and a bath room with hot and 
cold water; every room is heated by a flue from the 
furnace in the cellar.^^^ 

Another "experienced practical farmer" in 
April, 1881, wanted two more pupils to fill the 
places of two who had left to start farms of their 
own : on his 1500 acres, with 1500 sheep, 300 head 
of cattle, and 100 hogs, he would be glad to re- 
ceive two young fellows Avho were "prepared to 
work: under 20 years of age preferred: and to 



148 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

take an interest in the affair, or I would rather 
be without them."^^^ The son of an English country 
vicar also listed vacancies for two pupils on his 
farm, adding: 

Pupils would have 5000 acres to see managed, which 
we cut up into 15 farms. Land is worth about 30s to 
40s per acre, and should a young fellow give his mind 
to the work after he has seen the American ways for 
a year or so, he could either buy or rent a farm and 
go into stock raising, or hogs, either will pay about 
50 per cent. Chicago is our great stock market, so 
we are always sure of a good market. I have a very 
experienced American foreman, who would give in- 
structions in the various ways and means of farming 
in the Far West. The life is rough, and no one ought 
to come who cannot stand roughing it at times. Shoot- 
ing — wild geese, duck, rabbit, prairie hens, prairie 
wolf, deer, and many small birds. Outfit — good 
strong clothes, saddle and gun; boots bought out here 
are more suited to the country .... I may say we 
have out here, Hon. Capt. Moreton, brother to the 
Earl of Ducie, Hon. A. Sugden, Col. Fenton, A. Lub- 
bock, son of Sir J. Lubbock; and many others, about 
300 English Gentlemen in all."* 

Some Englishmen who wanted pupils procured 
for them in England furnished photographs of 
their farms. The owner of a large stock and 
agricultural farm situated ''one mile from a rising- 
town in the English Colony" offered excellent 
board, lodging, and tuition for gentlemen wishing 



FARM PUPILS 149 

to study American methods, and wrote to his agent 
in England as follows : 

I have a farm partly leased, partly in my own 
hands, under my manager, of 743 acres .... It is a 
large hog and cattle farm, managed under the best 
and newest methods, and with all the best machinery, 
shedding, stabling and yards, as used in that country. 
There is an excellent house, well sheltered, and in the 
prettiest situation in the district. I have put on an 
addition solely for the use of pupils wishing to learn 
farming before commencing for themselves. My 
manager Mr. has sole control of the farm- 
ing operations, and his wife looks after the house. 
He will give all opportunity to pupils wishing to learn 
farming to do so, and give them every advice he can, 
but he cannot be in any way responsible to parents or 
guardians for young men who do not care to work ... . 
The class of men I would lilve to see on my place is 
such as would work for their own sake, and who 
would do credit to anything they learnt on the farm, 
by getting on well afterwards .... 

We have a great many English gentlemen settled in 
the Le Mars district, and going out there you would 
find no lack of society, and at the same time find your- 
self in one of the best districts of the States for in- 
vesting in land for farming, or as many young fellows 
have done, for opening up a business in the town. A 
flax mill and a paper mill are both Avanted there at 
present, and there are no end of openings for starting 
in various ways. My place has the advantage of be- 
ing so near the to^\^l that one can find out all that can 



150 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

be learnt of the district, and yet get the advantage of 
living in the country. You can study farming and 
yet look into other industries too. ... I have about 
300 acres arable, and 100 acres enclosed pasture in 
my own hands at present, and of course, as in all that 
country, unlimited free grazing. 

You will see by the situation of my proj^erty that it 
is very well situated as a central position for studying 
the country and gaining information. I know many 
trustworthy gentlemen out there too, who would give 
any young men I introduce to them, perfectly dis- 
interested information and advice on any subject they 
might wish information on ... . You will see by the 
elevated plan of the yards [photographs of the farm 
were furnished] that they are well above the river, 
though not far from it, the House is well sheltered 
from the north by a fine young wood and a very high 
thick willow hedge behind it.^^^ 

T. G. Mellersh of Cheltenham, England, in 1881 
prepared for distribution a twelve page pamphlet 
advertising ''vacancies for boarders and pupils", 
adding a note that ''several gentlemen and young 
fellows from the Public Schools intend going out 
early next spring to the English Colony in Iowa, 
and Southern Minnesota"; but he published no 
tuition terms, not even in the letter he received 
from a man who lived in England: 

My brothers .... have now a large farm of their 
own, where they raise cattle, sheep and hogs. At first 
only two went out, but they reported so well upon it. 



FARM PUPILS 151 

that the third joined them last year (1880), and I 
learn from them by letters received this week, that 
(having got over the longest and severest winter ever 
known in the West) they look forward to a successful 
and profitable year .... For any pupil going to them 
£ — are to be paid .... When he reaches Iowa he can 
stay a month on my brother's farm, to see w^hether he 
likes the life, etc; if at the end of that time he decides 
upon remaining a further sum of £ — is to be paid. 
This will entitle him to a year's residence with my 
brothers, with whom he will live precisely as one of 
themselves, and will be taught everything necessary 
to become a stock raiser himself .... At the end of 
his year's residence, should he wish to buy a farm for 
himself, my brothers will themselves give him all the 
benefit of their experience as regards choice of site, 
price of land, authenticity of the deeds (a most im- 
portant point), &c., and will also when he has settled 
down help him in every way with advice, etc., to be- 
come successful."" 

The farm pupil idea, novel and picturesque as 
it seems to-day, necessarily aroused considerable 
curiosity among the American population in every 
part of northwestern Iowa. When a party of 
twenty-five young Englishmen arrived in 1882, six 
of them as pupils for Captain Moreton, a Le Mars 
editor observed that the city and county were be- 
coming the headquarters of ''the very pick and 
flower of immigration from Great Britain, a fact 
that exasperates our rivals not a little." At the 



152 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

same time, the system also evoked criticism. 
People in England believed that a tuition charge 
on American pioneer farms, though only half as 
high as in England, was ridiculous, dishonest, and 
unjustified because the pupil did enough work to 
earn his board and lodging. In stating and answer- 
ing this sort of argument, one writer declared : 

I have frequently heard people allude to gentlemen 
of unexceptionable position, living in comfort in 
America or the Colonies, who take pupils into their 
families at moderate premiums, as if they were a 
species of swindler. This arises, I fancy, from a com- 
mon misconception that all farmers in America are 
upon the same social plane and live in the same style ; 
that they are all burning with anxiety for the com- 
pany and responsibility of young Englishmen whom 
they never saw, and who as a class have not unfor- 
tunately in these countries a very good name, who 
have never done a day's work in their lives, have not 
the remotest notion of how to set about a single farm- 
ing operation, and may quite possibly turn out both 
idle and dissipated. 

Such novices, '' gently-nurtured, inexperienced, 
soft-handed", when set to doing chores such as 
fetching cows, cleaning stables, cutting wood, and 
other menial things unbecoming an English gentle- 
man, could hardly be expected to be always ''on 
the jump". Reared as the sons of squires and 
parsons, and just out of school, how could they 



FARM PUPILS 153 

handle plows, axes, and machinery satisfactorily? 
Pupils in general, according to one reliable ob- 
server, were a nuisance, a liability, a burden to 
their employers. Of course they did some work, 
but even on that score an employer would shake 
his head with a grim smile. On his side he would 
point to "damage and risk of damage to horses 
and machinery, a very real and ever present diffi- 
culty among pupils, and the risk of getting a black 
sheep who cannot at such a distance be shipped off 
at a moment's notice as in England, and for whose 
baneful presence no money can adequately com- 
pensate.'"^^ 

Nor was mifavorable criticism confined to Eng- 
lish people : Americans also looked askance at the 
farm pupil system.'^''^ How long it lingered among 
English farmers in Iowa is not easy to state ; but 
by the month of August, 1882, the Close brothers 
at least had completely abandoned it as both 
troublesome and unprofitable. Some indication of 
the character of the system and one of its un- 
fortunate after effects may be gathered from a 
news item on the subject published at Le Mars in 
1885: 

A suit of some interest to our English friends has 
just been terminated in the court of Queen's Bench, 
London. Action for libel was brought about a year 
ago against the Edinburgh Scotsman by Henry Shear- 



154 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

man for republishing a letter from the Chicago Herald 
in reference to plaintiff's so-called ''farming school" 
in southern Minnesota. Mr. Shearman claimed 
$50,000 damages from the Scotsman but after over a 
year spent in collecting testimony the case was finally 
dismissed. Mr. Shearman's philanthropic scheme was 
to send out to this country young men, sons of Eng- 
lish gentlemen, and secure for them openings as farm- 
ers in southern Minnesota and other parts of the 
state. A fee of 60 to 75 guineas was exacted from the 
''pupils," as they were called, to insure them the 
same positions as the heads of families on selected 
farms. Shearman issued circulars of a very attractive 
character showing the desirability of the positions he 
proposed to secure for his "pupils," and had his 
agents over here, who received his "pupils" and con- 
ducted them to their farms. The pupils, upon arriv- 
ing, found that they were treated as mere farm labor- 
ers, doing the meanest and most menial work, and 
getting less than the farm laborers' wages. The case 
was called before Baron Pollock of the court of 
queens' bench, and a special jury, in the latter part of 
February, and, upon motion of defendant's counsel, 
dismissed with costs, the plaintiff not being prepared 
for trial.''' 

Stories and yarns of the doing of the ''pups" 
still circulate freely in and about Le Mars: un- 
hitching heavy draft horses out in the field to in- 
dulge in a running race with side bets, shooting 
at their master's prize steers and pet hogs, riding 
pell-mell into town, doing every kind of ordinary 



FARM PUPILS 155 

farm work in the crudest, most ludicrous way, wild 
and boisterous wherever they went — all that 
and much more supplied widespread amusement 
among their rough-and-ready Yankee neighbors 
for many years to come. 

It was enough to make some people smile when 
Captam Moreton advertised in English papers 
that he would teach thirty young men the science 
of farming for the sum of $600 each per year; 
they stood amazed when scores of young men of 
the well-to-do middle classes and even the younger 
sons of British noblemen flocked over to take ad- 
vantage of such and similar offers until Le Mars 
had in its vicinity "several hundreds of these boys 
who could not tell a plow from a pumpkin '\ 
Americans roared with laughter or the more puri- 
tanical ones looked on with long faces when the 
f lui began : the boys would do little dribs of work, 
and make up for it by mounting their ponies in 
true wild west style, dash into town in cavalcades, 
and *' paint the place a rip, staring red." 

But the farm pupil system was not without its 
permanent effects on the community: it brought 
money into circulation and tradesmen reaped a 
golden harvest. ^lany of the lads were spend- 
thrifts, and all had remittances from home: Le 
Mars accordingly experienced a boom of no mean 
proportions. Fine business blocks sprang up as 



156 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

if by magic ; immigration poured in ; the town be- 
came the center of commerce for a vast area for 
miles around; and Le Mars obtained a striking 
individuality of its own. 



XIV 

IOWA ENGLISHMEN AND THE RUGBY 
COLONY 

About the time that the Close brothers founded 
the English settlement in Phnnouth County, 
Thomas Hughes, the author of Tom Brown's 
Schooldays, helped found Rugby in eastern Ten- 
nessee. There, upon lands tilled by slaves before 
the Civil War, rose small farmsteads in the hands 
of graduates from the famous English public 
school of Rugby; there, as in Iowa, the younger 
sons of the English gentry apprenticed themselves 
to the earlier holders of land until they in their 
turn acquired land and became ''the gentlemen 
farmers of the future. ' ' The Rugby colou}^ thus re- 
sembled the Le Mars settlement, at least in its plan. 

Hughes roused some opposition among his 
countr3rmen : why did he not show his patriotism 
by going to Canada, and w^hy did he prefer the 
South to Iowa or other western States? Canada, 
he answered, was too far from England, and be- 
sides it had long winters and no variety of occupa- 
tions. And as for the American West, "droughts, 
flies, difficulties of drainage, and from five to six 

157 



158 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

months' enforced idleness, so far as agriculture is 
concerned, had to be considered. ' '"* 

The Tennessee experiment was eagerly watched 
by the English of Le Mars. Early in the year 1881 
they heard that the colonists had been cheated, 
that their land w^as worthless, and that their com- 
munity w^ould be transplanted to Minnesota."^ A 
few months later came the tidings of the death of 
Philip Nairn (once a member of the Le Mars 
colony) and of the raging of a typhoid epidemic 
at Rugby. When the collapse of the colony was 
announced in February, 1882, its boys were urged 
to come to Le Mars "bag and baggage" ; but at the 
end of the year Rugby"' still occupied its place on 
the map, with a population of two hundred, 'Hhe 
majority of whom spend their time in hunting and 
playing billiards." As owners of nearly 30,000 
acres of land, the English settlers of Tennessee 
were reputed to be cultivating only fifty acres; 
and shortly afterward they mortgaged their tract 
to the extent of £20,000. ' ' What a vivid contrast ' ', 
remarks a Le Mars editor, ''Rugby presents to our 
own rushing, pushing, thriving, bustling Plymouth 
Colony!" The pitiful condition of things in that 
region in 1883 caused the same writer to pen the 
following excellent editorial on ''Our Penniless 
Young Gentlemen": 

An anxious inquiry has lately been raised in some 



THE RUGBY COLONY 159 

of the more thoughtful of journals in England as to 
what was to become of the large class there of penni- 
less young gentlemen : the younger sons of the gentry, 
well-built, well-educated, clever young fellows whose 
fathers' moderate income goes to the elder son and 
as dower to the daughters. The outlook in England 
is so utterly bare for these lads that the only alter- 
native now suggested is between trade and a regiment 
of which the privates shall be the sons of gentlemen. 
The objection made to the latter course is the life of 
enforced idleness in an inferior position and to the 
first the social degradation. The experiment of Rug- 
by, in Tennessee, as we all know was some people's 
safety-valve for this social difficulty, and the sons of 
the gentry came to it in large numbers, to play tennis 
and to drink and lounge in the Tabard Inn. The 
place is now left to a few hard-working, uneducated 
men who will succeed in the end. But the penniless 
young gentry are no better off than before. 

The result among the j^oung Englishmen who have 
flocked to northwestern Iowa stands out in striking 
contrast to that of those who mustered at Rugby. 
They belonged to the same class, brought with them 
similar habits and like expectations, and were counter- 
parts of the young gentlemen who settled in Tennes- 
see. Among them was an inconsiderable quota of dis- 
sipated and lalh-de-dah young fellows, some of whom 
have paid the penalty of their weakness, though most 
of them have profited by the rugged experiences which 
all who will live in this region must pass through. 
We have now a flourishing English colony in this 
region, composed of intelligent industrious young men. 



160 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

They have acquired a taste for business and enjoy 
themselves as much as any Hawkeye can, in develop- 
ing a farm or driving a bargain. "VVe have room 
enough in the all-absorbing AVest for all the gritty 
young fellows in England who are ambitious to live 
to some purpose. They will find ample scope for 
their energies on these undeveloped prairies, but they 
must know that the price of success is — attention to 
business. 

An English writer a few years later gave his 
estimate of the results of the emigration of ''young 
gentlemen'' and alleged that upon the whole Eng- 
land might well feel proud of them. That many 
bemoaned their lot and returned home, cursing the 
country and every one connected with it and mini- 
mising their own share in the failure to succeed; 
that many brought disgrace and ridicule to them- 
selves and their country was not surprising when 
one considered the variety of material that of 
necessity made up the exodus; but the fact re- 
mained "that the gently nurtured of this nation 
cheerfully undertake and show a fair measure of 
success in a career which would appal the equiva- 
lent class in any other country in the world.'"" 



XV 
FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 

When the Close brothers had once embarked up- 
on their scheme of promoting northwestern Iowa, 
and by reason of their prominent connections in 
England induced Englishmen of wealth and posi- 
tion to act upon their representations, the news- 
papers of Le Mars missed no opportunity to let 
the reading public know all about the enterprise 
to the last detail. Almost every week for a num- 
ber of years the}^ chronicled the arrival of immi- 
grants from England and introduced them by 
name to the Yankee inhabitants of city and 
country. Thus, in the spring of 1884 came a 
'* jolly company of young men": M., R., and H. 
P. Margesson, R. and E. Fullbrook, A. Bower, W. 
Edsell, G. Morris, R. Stanhope, and M. Farquhar. 
One interesting account, "Immigrants in Broad- 
cloth", reads as follows: 

A rare sight indeed is the Lemars depot on the 
arrival of fresh accessions to the English Colony. The 
new comers confound all our knowledge and estab- 
lished traditions of immigrants, for immigrants in- 
deed they are. They descend from the recesses of the 



161 



162 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Pullman palace cars dressed in the latest London and 
Paris styles, with Oxford hats, bright linen shining 
on their bosoms, a gold repeater ticking in the depths 
of their fashionably cut vest pockets and probably 
carrying in their hands the latest agony in canes. If 
ladies accompany the party their graceful forms are 
shrouded in the most elegant of cloaks or dolmans, 
their heads being surmounted by the most coquettish 
of bonnets and their fresh countenances beam with 
the ruddy glow of health and good nature. The chil- 
dren, too, look as if they had just stepped out of a 
band-box and nowhere among young or old is there 
a hint of travel-stained weariness or poverty. 

The scene at the baggage car is as peculiar. Stout 
Japanned and heavy leathern boxes and trunks are 
tossed on the platform by the inveterate baggage- 
smasher, who seems to make a final effort to render 
their seemingly invulnerable joints. Box after box, 
trunk after trunk,^"^ until a miniature mountain has 
been built on the platform. We recall an instance 
last summer of a single family that had eighty-two 
pieces of baggage, all of the strong and desirable 
variety. 

They are by no means so dainty as they seem. In 
a day or two the men are seen on the streets with the 
plainest of stout corduroy suits, with knee-breeches 
and leather leggings. Great, strong, hardy-looking 
fellows they are, and though most of them are fresh 
from the English schools and universities, they have 
plenty of muscle and snap. We doubt whether any 
little town in the great West, since its settlement be- 
gan, ever received any considerable installment of 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 163 

such "immigrants" as may be seen almost any day 
dropping off at the union depot in Lemars. 

The question will be asked, What kind of settlers 
for a new country do these dainty and wealthy looking 
persons make? and the answer is, the best in the 
world."' 

The Le Mars press faithfully chronicled the do- 
ings of the promoters and of the '' colonists" them- 
selves every time news items of the personal type 
could be discovered, nothing of interest escaping 
the vigilant local reporters even of that day; and 
since one i3aper boasted of a mailing-list that in- 
cluded England, Ireland, Scotland, France, and 
Germany,^"" its ''colony" news gained some cur- 
rency abroad, though, of course, not as much as 
in American journals. Newspapers throughout 
Iowa contributed plenty of publicity to the sub- 
ject; nor were they careful to omit an element of 
exaggeration, as the following illustration bears 
witness : 

So great has become ithe importance of this ex- 
clusively English colony that an office both in Le Mars 
and London are necessary to conduct its business. 
The caste feeling is said to be very strong, and none 
are admitted but the pure bloods of wealth and char- 
acter. Any number of Lords are now scattered over 
Plymouth and Sioux counties. If they all have [the] 
energy and vim of the Close Brothers they will make 
northwestern Iowa blossom like the rose.^" 



164 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

A correspondent writing from Le Mars guaran- 
teed that a visit to the English community (he 
does not state how widely scattered and indefinite 
it was, with American farmers and townspeople 
in the region at all times more numerous) ''would 
almost convince one that he was in England, so 
completely do the customs of that nation pre- 
dominate.'""^ Another Iowa newspaper enthu- 
siastically informed its readers : 

A large proportion of the settlers are English — 
drawn from the great middle classes of the mother 
country — men of brawn and brains, of cash and 
credit, of labor and life. These people are settling 
here by scores, hundreds and thousands. They all 
have money, and are all enterprising, shrewd, and full 
of resources. In a short time they will own the whole 
country, and under their hands it will blossom like 
a garden.^"^ 

A much more moderate pen picture of Le Mars 
and its immigrant arrivals appeared at Dubuque, 
although the correspondent's eulogy of Germans 
and Teutons as a useful type of settler probably 
fits the Hollanders who had been going to Orange 
City in large numbers for at least a decade : 

The most notable feature of this place is the in- 
cessant flow of foreign immigration to it — English, 
Germans and some Hibernians, too. It is a sight as 
amusing as it is novel to our natives, who have never 
been abroad or spent any time in any of our principal 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 165 

seaport cities, to witness those people as they alight 
from the trains at the depot move through the streets 
in groups and congregate around the hotels and public 
places distinctly exhibiting "by the cut of their jib" 
their respective colors (nationality), with leather leg- 
gings of the Englishman, and the Teutons. I saw one 
of the latter, who had room enough in the seat of his 
pants, if such they might be called, to hold a fair sized 
balloon, and as he exposed himself to the fresh breeze 
that was blowing, I thought of him only as a balloon 
and the perilous ascent which he might suddenly be 
called upon to make, much against his will and far 
above his ambition. But his covering was too open 
all around for dangerous inflation so he did not go 
up but stood safely anchored to the ground with a 
monster pair of wooden shoes. With his toggery and 
the habiliments which covered his wife and four chil- 
dren he could furnish sail enough for a small sized 
ship, and I am sure their wooden shoes would answer 
the purpose of life boats in an emergency. Yet with 
all their grotesque appearance one of them is worth 
more in the market of utility than a ship load of 
your fashionable society folks who would not be taught 
the noble art of production while they are self taught 
and excel in the simple knack of consumption. Yes, 
these same Teutons are welcomed settlers here, and 
are just the kind of material to develop a new country. 
The English colony in town and country now num- 
bers between four and five hundred against less than 
two hundred one 3^ear ago, and it is thought will reach 
a thousand before another year shall have expired .... 
The growth of this town is remarkable. Its population 



166 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

has increased over thirty per cent since the last 
government census was taken, and should it continue 
at this rate for another year, and, it is believed it 
will, the population will not fall short of four thou- 
sand.'°* 

Outside the State of Iowa, the press of St. Paul, 
Minnesota, made its readers well acquainted with 
*Hhe New England of the Northwest" not only by 
reason of rail connections, but also because the 
settlers of that part of Iowa w^ere expected to look 
to St. Paul as a market for their cattle and grain 
and to its merchants for their supplies. The 
Pioneer Press^°^ took especial interest in the tide 
of emigration to Le Mars, and its fame among the 
better classes of Old England which had con- 
tributed men of known character and large re- 
sources such as '*Capt. the Hon. Reynolds More- 
ton, R. N., who is a brother of the earl of Ducie ; 
Lord Hobart, the future earl of Buckinghamshire ; 
the son of Admiral Sir Sidney Dacres, K. C. B. ; 
the two sons of Admiral Farquhar of the Royal 
British navy; a son of Sir John Lubbock, the 
member of parliament for the city of London ; the 
son of Lord Alfred Paget; R. Potter, the son of 
the president of the Cobden club, and others of 
equally honorable connections and high blood." 

A New York paper called attention to the fact 
that the L^nited States, besides being an asylum 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 167 

for the oppressed of all nations, was attracting at 
Le Mars the wealth and affluence of England ''to 
our fertile lands and business advantages as ample 
opportunities for productive investments.'""^ Be- 
sides telling about the 500 young Englishmen, 
nearly all unmarried, who had settled near Le 
Mars, an organ of public opinion at Chicago pub- 
lished the address of Mr. Walter, member of Par- 
liament and proprietor of London's greatest news- 
paper, after his return to London from a visit in 
the West. With his wife and daughter "The 
Thunderer", as he was called, had attended a 
party given at Le Mars by Fred Brooks Close on 
the evening of October 5, 1881, in honor of his 
marriage with Miss Margaret Humble. Speaking 
to English farmers on the occasion of the annual 
dirnier of the Abingdon Agricultural Society, he 
mentioned the names of the gentlemen who had 
emigrated to Iowa because he was "firmly per- 
suaded that America will become more a field of 
enterprise for thousands of young English gentle- 
men farmers and other classes of people. "^°^ 

Under the heading, "Young Man, Go West", 
one of the most widely read and popular maga- 
zines'"^ of the time published Poultney Bigelow's 
account of a visit to Le Mars in 1880 and the 
colony of about three hundred Englishmen who 
had undertaken, "with moderate capital and in- 



168 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

finite pluck, to build up their fortunes in this 
country." The writer had carefully examined 
northwestern Iowa, and he gave ''the dollars and 
cents ' ' of farming in that region as an evidence of 
its wonderful future. The Le Mars Sentinel in 
reprinting his article and referring to his "calm 
and judicial language" declared editorially: 

Plymouth county is rapidly arresting the attention 
of men everywhere, and those who examine it most 
minutely are best satisfied that it is the most desirable 
region of cheap lands in America, for investment and 
settlement. When the leading magazines and journals 
in the world are presenting its claims on the attention 
of both capital and labor, we may rest assured that it 
has merits of no ordinary character. He who owns 
a farm in Plymouth county owns a fortune, and there 
are still fortunes in Northwestern Iowa for 100,000 
enterprising families. But they are being rapidly 
appropriated and they who would have them, must 
secure them soon. 

During its "boom" days Le Mars claimed the 
unique distinction of being better known in Great 
Britain than any other city of the United States. 
This resulted, of course, not only from the fact 
that the Close brothers and their fellow colonists 
were men of high social position in the old coun- 
try, but also from the wide publicity given to their 
enterprise. The pamphlet^"^ printed in several 
editions by the Closes found its way to the best 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 169 

circles; while letters to the editors of well-known 
English newspapers and articles in, magazines 
gave the '^ Gateway'', as Le Mars was called by its 
American denizens, a fame out of all proportion 
to the number of Britishers who had availed them- 
selves of residence within its borders. All these 
writings, like Poultney Bigelow's article, had one 
characteristic in common : they described agricul- 
ture and the live stock industry in Iowa, but- 
tressed with figures, percentages, and tabular out- 
lines, thus constituting a convincing form oif 
propaganda. 

Writing for an English magazine, Robert Ben- 
son informed the English people of the success of 
the commimity planted in Iowa, basing it not so 
much on the pleasures of the life as on the finan- 
cial profits already accrued: he gave '*an accurate 
account of the results obtained through four years' 
labour" in contrast with the estimates of others. 
After alluding to the miiversity and public school 
men who had followed the lead of the Closes, Ben- 
son frankly pointed out some of the discomforts 
which necessarily attended settling in a new 
country : 

It is not everyone, for instance, Avho can endure 
with equanimity the complete absence of good ser- 
vants unless imported from England, or not to have 
his boots blacked except for an extra payment cf ten 



170 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

cents, or to get nothing but tea and coffee to drink, 
and that none of the best, and only salt pork badly 
cooked to eat, when off the beaten track. Moreover, 
the natives of the country, when travelling, whether 
to inspect land or to buy stock, and stopping for the 
night, as the custom is, at the nearest farm house, for 
a charge of 25 cents, as if it were an inn, sleep two 
in a bed, and do not wash ; and an Englishman would 
give great offence who refused to conform to the iirst 
part at least of the custom, if the lack of accommoda- 
tion made it necessary. Nor again does Iowa enjoy 
the equable cold of the "isothermal" region. It does 
not matter how many degrees below zero the thermom- 
eter is, if only it is perfectly still, and the sun is 
shining. But Iowa is liable, occasionally in the win- 
ter, to wind and low temperature combined, and then 
if one be delicate, there is nothing for it but to stay 
in houses which are well built and warm.^^° 

C. W. Benson, a partner of the Close brothers 
in England, sent a lengthy communication to a 
Manchester newspaper'" playing up the remark- 
able advantages of English emigration to Iowa, 
his object being to illustrate w^hat could "still be 
done by people who go out prepared to put their 
hearts and heads into farming in Western Amer- 
ica. ' ' Articles such as these had a wide circulation 
in the British Colonies, and afforded excellent 
copy for the press in Canada.^" Amusingly dif- 
ferent, however, was a letter from Le Mars to 
Manchester composed by a young Englishman 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 171 

who, after relating his adventures as a duck- 
hunter, dashed 'Svith refreshing kittenishness in- 
to the great hired-girl problem" and made ''some 
surprising discoveries in social science", when he 
wrote : 

Now as to the "helps," though they don't call their 
mistress "Mum," yet they are kept in perfect sub- 
jection. Of course, among men the tinker and tailor 
call one by one's surname, or even by one's Christian 
name if he happens to know it. To that you get used. 
Also in hotels all dine together, the working man and 
the swell. To us English it is wonderful how civil all 
Yankees are, nothing could be too good for us. They 
opened doors for us, carried our bags and never took 
a "tip" during our travels; but there the English, 
as a rule, carry revolvers and now and then use them, 
which creates respect."^^ 

A Le Mars editor asked if ''the callow swell" 
was "a saphead, or is he only trying to come Mark 
Twain on his English friends?" 

London's greatest newspaper opened its columns 
to writers interested in the Le Mars project; and 
its owner, ^Ir. Walter, after a visit to his country- 
men in Iowa, did not hesitate to acquaint every- 
one with what he saw. In the course of an after- 
dinner speech Mr. Walter declared: 

And what I want to impress upon you is that it is 
exceedingly desirable in the interests of agriculture 
generally that in all the English counties there should 



172 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

be a certain body of men able to advise neighbors who 
are about to start for that part of the world. [Hear, 
hear.] And I would like to exhort you who are not 
too old to try the experiment of my Lincolnshire 
friends, not to buy land — that is the last thing I 
would recommend — without twelve months' experi- 
ence, but to go out first and see the country and be- 
come the fore-runners of others. If there be any here 
who would be the Caleb and Joshua, I should be very 
glad to give them hints. [Hear, hear.] Farmers 
couldn't do better than form an association in differ- 
ent parts of the country to enable people to go out 
and judge for themselves. That, I believe, is what 
Mr. Pell and his friends who went out to America a 
few years ago are doing. You may depend upon it 
that any Englishman going there who is a good judge 
of land, who is steady, and industrious, and not afraid 
of a rigorous clmiate, may commence a course of life 
which will make him prosperous and wealthy before 
he is 50 years of age."* 

Had all the Englishmen whom he encountered 
at Le Mars stuck to their enterprise, Mr. Walter's 
prophecy would have come very near realization. 

England's weekly purveyor of humor, Punch^-^^ 
saw its chance for a joke at the expense of the 
emigrants at Le Mars. It presented a half -page 
cartoon depicting two handsome maids in the 
midst of preparing a meal in the kitchen. One of 
them holds an uncovered steaming sauce pan and 
the other is tending a leg of mutton suspended in 



FAME OF THE LE MARS COLONY 173 

a high round stove which stands over hot coals on 
the floor. To the right are two athletic men just 
coming in from work, with shovels, picks, and 
spades upon their shoulders: one of them gazes 
hungrily at the food while the other, a man with 
heavy mustache and side whiskers, wipes the sweat 
from his manly brow\ Under the cartoon head- 
ing, ''Colonising in Iowa, U. S.", appears the 
parenthetical explanation, "A Hint to the Young- 
er Sons of our Aristocracy, and eke to the Daugh- 
ters thereof". The following dialogue ensues: 

Lady Maria — How late you are, boys: your baths 
are ready, and I've mended your dress trousers, Jack. 
So look sharp and clean yourselves, and then you can 
lay the cloth, and keep an eye on the mutton while 
Emily and I are dressing for dinner. 

Lord John — All right. How many are we to lay 
for? 

Lady Emily — Eight. The Talbots are coming, and 
Major Cecil is going to bring the Duke of Stilton, 
who's stopping with him. 



XVI 

BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL LIFE IN 
THE ENGLISH COLONY 

Although most of the Englishmen who took up 
residence in northwestern Iowa went to farming 
either for themselves or as pupils or farm laborers 
for others, some preferred to find work in neigh- 
boring towns, even when they owned land in the 
country. It is manifestly impossible to know what 
all these men did, but the following account may 
be taken as typical of what they set their hands 
and heads to.''^^ 

Besides the three Close brothers and Con Ben- 
son, who, as already related, did so much every- 
where to bring untilled soil under cultivation and 
sold it in vast quantities, many more engaged in 
other lines of business. John Hopkinson and 
Fred Paley formed a partnership to do a com- 
mission business; and when the former became 
steward for the Close farms in Osceola County, 
Paley continued with J. C. Brockbank who had 
dissolved a partnership with Frank C. Cobden. 
The latter erected a fine brick block in Le Mars. 
Montague J. Chapman set up as a general insur- 

174 



BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONAL LIFE 175 

ance agent and later with H. Rickards advertised 
insurance, real estate and loans, the Floyd sale 
yard, feed stables, and stock sheds. 

W. Gladstone was a steamship agent at Sibley. 
Robert Grouse and Sydney Milne maintained a 
business partnership until the latter 's death at 
Hot Springs. Herbert Cope, an old resident of 
China, sold tea specially selected and shipped to 
him directly by old friends in China and Japan, 
and for several years he was advertised to the 
public as 'Hea importer'' so that English residents 
of the countr}^ could not have lacked their favorite 
afternoon beverage. 

Maclagan, Warren, and Watson built a large 
sale yard and did a general commission business. 
James Brough Warren sold his Floyd Meat Mar- 
ket with its roast beef for Englishmen and went 
to Larchwood to take charge of the Sykes estate. 
A. W. Maitland served as Captain Moreton's pri- 
vate secretary. The English owners of the Le 
Mars Pork Packing House with a capacity of four 
hundred hogs a day wxre Roberts, Frost, and 
Heaphy, but for a time they killed on only one 
day a week. Mr. Frost, once a London ''bobby", 
also shipped live stock and grain from Merrill. 
J. H. Grayson joined John Morgan in brick mak- 
ing. Leuric Charles Cobbe, Charles Eller, and 
Alfred H. Paget bought the soap factory of Frost 



176 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

and Company and are said to have brought to the 
business *'the vigor and sagacity and at the same 
time the conservative tendencies of the commercial 
classes of England where they received their train- 
ing." The Le Mars Land and Stock Feeding Com- 
pany was capitalized at $125,000 with Captain 
Moreton as president in May, 1884, other English- 
men also taking stock. 

Dr. J. Twidale began practice at Le Mars 
in March, 1882, his professional card reading: 
''Bachelor of Medicine, Master in Surgery, Licen- 
tiate in Midwifery, University of Edinburgh, 
Scotland." He does not appear to have tarried 
long; nor did Howard P. Deakin who arrived in 
the spring of 1884 as ''barrister to practise". W. 
Thomson, a son of the Archbishop of York, after 
spending a while at Quorn Farm, decided to go 
into law at Sioux City. Somewhat later "an Eng- 
lish C. Q. S. (1st class) " sought an engagement as 
tutor in a family for the winter. W. G. Harcourt 
Vernon began his career as bank cashier at Kings- 
ley in 1884 and afterwards went to Sioux City. 
Charles Mylius entered a bank at Dalton, and 
afterwards owned the Sioux City Planing Mill 
before going back to the old family place on the 
shores of Lake Como, Italy. G. C. Maclagan and 
Henry J. Moreton worked as cashiers in the bank 
at Le Mars, the latter now being engaged in the 



BUSINESS AND PKOFESSIONAL LIFE 177 

grain business at Minneapolis. A. C. Colledge, 
who also resides in the Flour City, still has a real 
estate, insurance, loan, and collection business in 
charge of Adair Colpoys at Le Mars. 

Tom Deal try, once a Moreton ''pup", and later 
buyer of grain and stock at Maurice in Sioux 
County, is now with Woods Brothers at Sioux 
City ; while his neighbor and former Rugby school- 
mate, Henry H. Drake, who worked a farm for 
several years, is now employed by Armour and 
Company. Percy E. Prescott, for many years a 
resident of Sioux County and popular starter of 
horse races at the annual fair, has in recent years 
owned and managed the Palace Dray Line at 
Sioux City. Richard Latham is a reporter on the 
Sentinel at Le Mars, where also Frederick K. Veal 
and Gr. A. C. Clarke of the early comers may still 
be found, the former owning a lumber yard.^^^ 



XVII 
A STORY OF COAL 

It is a well-known fact that the absence of two 
things in particular retarded the settlement of the 
open prairies of the Middle West: lack of fuel 
and lack of transportation. Although the larger 
streams and crude highways and timber lands 
enabled the pioneers to surmount these difficulties 
to some extent in eastern and southern Iowa, long 
hauls to market by wagon or by water left much 
to be desired until the railroads came. In the 
prairie counties of northwestern Iowa the earliest 
pioneers were compelled to set up their homes 
along or near the streams in order to have easy 
access to the scanty wood supply of the region, 
while later settlers made weary journeys to dis- 
tant places for the fuel necessary to tide them over 
the bitter cold of winter. 

The coming of a railroad changed all this; and 
when several roads of steel cut across the land, the 
problems of transportation and lack of fuel were 
largely solved together. In time the planting of 
groves upon the farmsteads also helped to produce 
a fair supply of firewood ; but even so, the need of 

178 



A STORY OF COAL 179 

cheaper coal than railroads could possibly bring 
from the Des Moines Valley or from Illinois was 
always present. Expensive fuel became a great 
drain on the resources of the farmers : mines right 
on the spot would mean greater prosperity for the 
farmers and rapid industrial development as well. 
Accordingly, it was not uncommon for county 
boards of supervisors to encourage the search for 
coal deposits. In Plymouth County the board 
made a standing offer of $500 in 1873, $1000 in 
1875, and $5000 in 1884 for the discovery of a 
paying coal mine.""'* 

It was in the year 1880 that the Hon. Reynolds 
Moreton, captain for nine years of a British war- 
ship and brother of the Earl of Ducie, emigrated 
from England with his family and arrived in Le 
Mars with the fixed purpose to make the West his 
home. One mile northwest of town lay the farm 
of O. A. Moore. It so pleased the Captain's eye 
that he became the purchaser at what was then re- 
garded as a fabulous figure — thirty-four dollars 
per acre. Perched on the most elevated spot of 
this farm stood a large, carefully cultivated grove, 
and within its shelter stood a neat little dwelling 
from which the owner could enjoy a commanding 
view of Le Mars and a landscape that stretched 
for miles up and dowTi the valley of the Floyd 
River. 



180 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

On this farm Captain Moreton soon erected a 
fine mansion and made extensive arrangements to 
go into stock raising : yards, sheds, and barns were 
built and everything put in shape for business. 
But there was one great drawback — a lack of 
water. Wells were dug and windmills raised with- 
out accomplishing satisfactory results. The Cap- 
tain made up his mind that the only way to secure 
an abundant and constant supply was to sink an 
artesian well at any cost. Possessed of "a full 
quota of the proverbial tenacity and pluck of the 
typical Englishman", the Captain in the spring of 
1882 let a contract for the work."'** 

On the summit of the bluif in his stockyard, a 
derrick was raised, steam engines planted, and 
boring began. In due time the rumor spread that 
at a depth of 225 feet the contractor. Col. Strait, 
had struck a five-foot vein of coal, a big bonanza. 
The Captain insisted that the quantity had been 
overrated: it might be a pocket."" Needless to 
say, these doings at Dromore Farm merited news- 
paper mention, and ''busy tongues whispered to 
willing ears" what they had learned on good 
authority. The solid, sensible men of the com- 
munity, who had been through several mining 
sensations and had no faith in any such trumpery, 
''smiled sympathizingly at the ready credulity 
with which the story was received by gossips" — 



A STORY OF COAL 181 

they knew better. It was finally conceded, how- 
ever, that at a depth of three hundred feet a three- 
foot vein had been perforated. Moreover, it was 
reported that analysis of a sample of the coal 
showed a larger percentage of carbon than any 
coal hitherto discovered in Iowa!'""' 

Captain Moreton's attention was naturally 
diverted from water to coal. The twofold question 
in his mind and in the minds of many others 
could be none other than whether they had struck 
a mine or a mere pocket. While men still doubted, 
the signal for speculation had been sounded: 

Capt. Moreton has ordered a diamond drill, a little 
instrument that cost $3000.00 and the same is expected 
here shortly. A diamond drill is not a coal mine, but 
is useful in discovering veins of coal. It cuts its way 
downward, leaving a core of the earth or rock through 
which it passes in the center. This core is withdrawn 
with the drill and of course can be inspected at leisure. 
So far Capt. Moreton. J. W. Hoopes of Muscatine 
has leased the mineral rights of the following farms: 
Grotkin's 360; Payn's 280; Wood's 240; Balsinger's 
80; Curtis' 80; Hackett & Hynes 160; Young 120; 
Sedgwick 40 ; Euble 200 and another piece of 80 acres, 
making in all 1720 acres. Mr. H. left on Tuesday 
evening, very sanguine that inside of two years he 
would be supplying this northwestern region with coal 
from the Lemars mines. It is not certain whether he 
will prospect any this fall or wait till spring, by which 



182 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

time we will be able to answer the conundrum: Have 
we a coal mine among us."^ 

Land near the shaft was soon reported as selling 
at from $100 to $300 per acre.''" 

Reference to White's geological survey of Iowa 
made in 1870 gave practically no encouragement 
to any belief in a true vein of workable coal in 
this region; but declaring that geologists didn't 
know everything, Captain Moreton began a second 
bore three-quarters of a mile northwest of the first. 
On March 1, 1883, the whole history of the enter- 
prise was published to the world. Two paragraphs 
of this interesting bit of publicity deserve the 
reader's perusal: 

From Nov. 27, 1882, till Feb. 23, 1883, a period of 
nearly three months, and in the face of desperate dis- 
couragements, the Captain and his faithful associate. 
Col. Strait, kept at work. As will be seen by the 
*4og" which the Captain furnishes for publication 
herewith, a vein of three feet was struck at a depth 
of 188 feet, but this did not satisfy his Alexandrian 
ambition. The work was prosecuted for nearly another 
hundred feet, and the magnificent result secured which 
we herewith announce — a five foot vein, of the rich- 
est bituminous coal ever touched in Iowa. 

Though searching eagerly for this very thing, its 
actual discovery rather took away the Captain's 
breath. "VVe read that when Thales finally worked 
out the famous 47th proposition of the 1st Book of 
Euclid, after years of earnest toil, he felt so elated 



A STORY OF COAL 183 

that he sacrificed seventy fat oxen to the gods. It is 
also said of Archimedes, that when he thought out 
a means of discovering the cubic contents of Hiero's 
golden crown, he was so overcome that all he could 
do was to exclaim, Eureka. Now whether the Captain 
said or did anything that will warrant an allusion to 
these ancient duffers we cannot tell, but this we do 
know, that hundreds and thousands of others have 
indulged in exuberant hieroglyphics over his grand 
discovery, that make the classic utterances of these 
ancient philosophers sound stale and common place.^^* 

Meanwhile, although public excitement had be- 
gun to lag, the confidence of the explorers had in- 
duced the Plymouth Coal Company to publish a 
notice of incorporation with $10,000 of capital 
stock for the purpose of leasing, subleasing, and 
purchasing coal lands as well as prospecting, min- 
ing, and selling coal. The officers were J. F. Heeb, 
president; C. E. Corkery, secretary; H. F. Sug- 
den, treasurer ; and A. B. Ferris, general manager. 
Mr. Sugden quickly sold his share in the under- 
taking ''for a handsome sum". The company 
pushed work on a mine on the Broken Kettle, 
hopeful but not over-sanguine.^" 

Owing to the fact that sensational tales were 
putting Captain Moreton's ''good name, veracity 
and honor in the market" (some people being still 
convinced that lumps of coal had been dropped 
down the bore), that gentleman published the 



184 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

official log of the second prospect bore on January 
25th and the complete log on March 1st to silence 
wagging tongues. The local press lauded ''the 
plucky Englishman" for solving the fuel question 
and, calling him "a brick", asserted: ''It was 
faith, backed by John Bull grit and $5000 that 
did it. "^^-^ 

Two columns of newspaper space on the coal 
discovery and the report of widespread excitement 
show how the people of Le Mars and vicinity were 
being affected. Even though someone estimated 
that it would cost $45,000 to sink a 289 foot shaft, 
unoccupied lands w^ere withdrawn from the mar- 
ket in several counties and many began to pre- 
pare for prospecting. In June appeared a notice 
of the incorporation of the North-Western Coal 
and Mining Company with a capital stock of 
$500,000 and the following directors : Captain the 
Hon. Reynolds Moreton, Henry J. More ton, G. C. 
Maclagan, and M. J. Chapman.^" 

The coal mine fever continued to rage at white 
heat when C. P. Woodard found another rich five- 
foot vein in July. But mining had not yet com- 
menced. In January, 1884, the log of Moreton 's 
second boring was published. That the promoters 
really lacked capital was clear when they passed 
around a subscription contract and secured $5000 
for sinking a shaft. Captain and Mrs. Moreton 



A STOKY OF COAL 185 

expressed their warmest thanks for donations 
made by the people, and the Captain wrote: "I 
trust that your confidence in myself personally, 
and in my discovery may not be misplaced." In 
a subsequent letter of thanks to the press, Tie 
added : ' ' God has greatly blessed this county and 
country by giving wealth for man to develop. 
May it be ours to acknowledge him always, and 
help to enrich one another." The sinking of a 
shaft ten and a half by five and a half feet was 
begun on Dromore Farm in January, 1884, when 
Le Mars already boasted a "Manufacturers' 
Union ".^-^ 

On the last day of February workers on the 
shaft had progressed eighty feet ; within two weeks 
they were busy pumping water; and in August 
they were one hundred feet down. Subscribers to 
the shaft fund then held a meeting: eleven were 
in favor of requiring that the shaft be sunk 297 
feet in accordance with Moreton's contract, while 
thirteen wanted their money refunded. Mean- 
while M. T. Maher, a practical miner and pros- 
pector, had made a third boring and found only 
lignite that would not pay to work. For sixteen 
months he had been employed by the Captain 
whom he thanked for "his kindness, treatment 
and honorable dealing. ' ' This led to the abandon- 
ment of the whole project, but caused many people 



186 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

to accuse the Captain of being a swindler and liar : 
they declared he took such a course to bring down 
the price of lands so that he might buy cheaply 
and then proceed to develop the find ! 

Captain Moreton answered his traducers by 
writing a history of the whole affair from be- 
ginning to end, asserting that he and his son had 
lost $14,000 on the venture. And, moreover, why 
should subscribers to his shaft f imd feel so badly '^ 
Had he not directly and indirectly brought 
$250,000 of capital to the country? They met 
again in October and released him from his prom- 
ise, but the story of the ''Big Bonanza" lingered 
long in their memory."^ 



XVIII 

GAIMES AND SPORTS AMONG THE 
ENGLISH 

Extremely novel to hard-working American 
settlers in Le Mars and the surrounding country 
were the games and sports which their English 
neighbors introduced. ''All work and no play" 
could hardly be expected from the large number 
of young Britishers who had flocked from the 
civilization of England to participate in the re- 
clamation of a wild, prairie region. Amusements 
and pleasures as old as the race were not easily 
relegated to the limbo of neglect wdth the coming 
of these people to the frontier. And so the forms 
of excitement and friendly rivalry so character- 
istic of English country life for generations were 
naturally perpetuated in a corner of the earth 
where everything else was in its infancy. This 
rejuvenating element must have gone far to miti- 
gate the tedium of existence among strangers in 
a foreign land. 

First of the contests which marked the English- 
man's love for thrills was a fight between cocks 
representing Ireland and England, the former 

187 



188 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

winning: the affair promised to be a regular fix- 
ture on Saturdays when country folk commonly 
journeyed to town.*'" Coaching or tally-ho riding, 
too, became a feature of outdoor life among these 
people. A four-in-hand with someone winding the 
horn no doubt startled the rough Yankee settlers 
of those days and the short newspaper notice, 
''Lost between Merrill and Le Mars, an English 
Coach Horn", must have given readers at least a 
vision of one phase of life in the old country.^^^ 

But not until a considerable number of the 
''sprightly young fellows" had been stationed up- 
on the farms in all directions from Le Mars did 
sporting life take on the aspect of first-class im- 
portance. Earh^ in the year 1881 the season opened 
with a paper chase on horseback. Announcement 
of the event invited Americans to participate. The 
start was made from Captain Moreton's farm at 
four o'clock in the afternoon: Fred Close and 
Blake as hares started east, strewmg bits of finely 
cut paper from large bags. Ten minutes later the 
hounds set out on the trail to overtake and capture 
the leaders. Messrs. Campbell, Dacres, Dodsworth, 
Gaskell, Oswell, Revell, Richards, Todrich, and 
Walker followed the scent of the hares who "with 
the cunning of their tribe curved and doubled over 
the South side and around the Cemetery, but one 
of them was overhauled on the homestretch by 



GAMES AND SPORTS 189 

Willie Gaskell." These paper chases, almost as 
exciting as fox hunts, usually occurred in the 
spring or fall and started from the farms of dif- 
ferent English owners.^^"^ 

One Thanksgiving day H. N. Waller, Cecil 
Benson, and A. B. Jones with their hounds sighted 
a magnificent buck on the banks of the Little 
Sioux and triumphantly brought in a head of 
twelve points.'^^ Sometimes the Le Mars wolf 
hounds met for an afternoon's sport in the country 
six or seven miles west of tow^n; and in honor of 
the wadding of James B. Close and Miss Humble 
at Pipestone, Minnesota, the English boys of Sib- 
ley and Le Mars were reported as "coming up 
with a deer and some hounds ' ' for an old-fashioned 
stag hunt. And it is recorded that H. M. Lord 
went to Wisconsin on a big bear hunt."^* 

One writer in England pictured the Le Mars 
colonists in a most alluring way: 

Fortunately, the open-air life is a healthful one. 
The absence of good turf is the only thing which so 
far has prevented much progress being made with 
cricket and football. But a man may be less pleasant- 
ly employed than in riding over the prairie through 
the lanes of flowers — sunflowers if he likes them ! — 
or in herding and driving cattle in the summer months, 
while there is fair quail or prairie chicken shooting 
in the autumn, and duck or wild goose as the winter 
begins and ends. Nor with so large a number of 



190 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

fellow-countrymen within reach is it possible to lack 
a congenial friend in time of need.^^° 

Soon after this story appeared, the national 
pastime of cricket was introduced to the citizens 
of Le Mars. Old cricketers who had been members 
of crack elevens back home sent their names to 
Fred Paley, so that a match between picked teams 
might be arranged. The boys practised some 
*'down on the Broken Kettle and at Quorn, just 
to keep their hands in. ' ' On July 1, 1881, a cricket 
club was organized and the following officers 
elected: president, Capt. R. Moreton; vice pres- 
ident, F. R. Price; secretary, F. Paley; commit- 
tee, J. Wakefield, F. Horsburgh, H. Hillyard, G. 
Maclagan, C Benson, G. Garnett, J. Brockbank, 
R. Walker. A match game was played the follow- 
ing ^y on grounds near the brick yard north of 
town. The event was well advertised in order that 
Americans, ''besides being able to witness a new 
and manly sport, might see how keenly our Eng- 
lish cousins enter the very spirit of the game."^^^ 

In their enthusiasm for a game which in Eng- 
land was played in immaculate white shirts, trou- 
sers, and shoes, the English presented a sharp con- 
trast to their American cousins in a struggle on 
the baseball field. Cricket matches became a fre- 
quent thing. Captain the Hon. R. Moreton 's eleven 
several times took defeat at the hands of the Le 



GAMES AND SPORTS 191 

Mars eleven. On one side appeared Preston, H. 
Moreton, Sutton, Dealtry, Stubbs, Captain More- 
ton, Johnson, Douglas, Kirwan, and Jervis and 
CoUedge as bowlers; on the other, R. Walker, T. 
Oswell, Clowes, Wakefield, Brockbank, Maclagan, 
McPherson, H. A. Watson, J. G. Watson, and 
Horsburgh and Grouse as bowlers. With a base- 
ball game and a shooting match going on while the 
English indulged in their favorite pastime, Le 
Mars must have been a very lively place on cer- 
tain days."^ A friendly encounter arranged es- 
pecially for the visiting Ijord Harris, a famous 
cricketer, had to be called off on account of ex- 
treme heat as well as rain."^ At one time the boys 
from Akron and West Fork defeated the Le Mars 
eleven. The most interesting match, perhaps, was 
that between Le Mars and St. Paul. The follow- 
ing account of the game appeared later : 

The cricket match between the Gateway team and 
that of St. Paul came off last Monday on the grounds 
of the latter club, and resulted in an easy victory for 
our boys. The grounds were in splendid condition, 
and nothing could exceed the hospitality of the home 
team, who had provided refreshments on the ground 
and an omnibus to take the visiting eleven and spec- 
tators to and from the grounds. The St. Paul men 
won the toss, and Messrs. Ramsey and Davidson were 
sent to defend the wicket against the bowling of 
Messrs. Horsburgh and Farquhar, with the score at 



192 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

1. Kamsey was clean bowled and Davidson failed to 
score — in fact the only man who could do anything 
with the Gateway bowlers was Mr. Pardoe, who played 
a plucky innings for 10 and 12, the innings closed for 
30. The battery of the home team was weak, and the 
scoring throughout small. This, no doubt, was owing 
to the good bowling of Messrs. Horsburgh and Far- 
quhar. Mr. Harry Clowes' wicket keeping was be- 
yond all praise, and the fielding of the visitors was 
remarkably good considering the little practice they 
have had this season. After an interval of ten minutes 
Messrs. Golightly and Payne defended the wicket for 
Lemars. Both gentlemen played carefully, and with 
the score at 22 Payne was caught. Here an adjourn- 
ment was made for refreshments. After the inner 
man had been refreshed Clowes succeeded Payne and 
showed some fine batting. Golightly was caught after 
playing a fruitless innings for 25. Horsburgh, Sin- 
clair and Jervis augmented the score by 15, 18 and 
10 respectively, and the innings closed with a total of 
116. Messrs. Dinwoodie and Ramsey bowled well for 
St. Paul, and the fielding of Messrs. Pardoe and 
Myron was particularly noticeable. 

In the second innings for St. Paul the Minnesota 
men were dismissed with a total of 59, the Gateway 
team thus winning the match by an innings and 27 
runs. A dinner was given in the evening at Hurds 
to the visitors, Dr. Macdonald, the organizer of the 
St. Paul club, presiding. The boys speak in glowing 
terms of the kindness and hospitality shown to them 
while at St. Paul and hope ere long to return the com- 
pliment by receiving a visit in Lemars from the north- 



GAMES AND SPORTS 193 

ern eleven, by whom they were so royally entertained. 
Myron was captain for the St. Paul team, and Price 
captain for Lemars. The umpires were Vernon, Le- 
mars, and Bethune for St. Paul. Many ladies wit- 
nessed the game."® 

At another time a team composed of Sibley and 
Le Mars men beat Mimieapolis, Messrs. Jervis, 
Dealtry, Croft, and Wakefield receiving most of 
the glory. That cricket was still being played in 
1887 is clear from the fact that the Cricket Club's 
bats and balls were stolen — articles ' ' of little or 
no value to anyone in this country and a robbery 
of this kind shows more than is common the 
viciousness of some of our rising citizens."^*" 

If cricket science could not be appreciated by 
persons unfamiliar with it, horse racing was quite 
a different matter. The fondness of Englishmen 
for this sport was so great that they organized the 
Le Mars Jockey Club with an annual membership 
fee of $10 and arranged for races at least twice a 
j^ear. Their June races were always widely ad- 
vertised: for weeks horse talk could be heard on 
the streets and in hotel lobbies. The English boys 
or "whips" were sure to get their flyers in train- 
ing early for each ''grand equestrian tournament". 
Entries were made at the office of the secretary, 
Fred Paley, and the books were closed several 
days before the races came off. Every year, be- 



194 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

ginning in 1880, when the races were held on Cap- 
tain Laing's grounds, the Le Mars Derby was one 
of the finest racing events in northern Iowa/" 

In the spring of 1881 about fifty horses were 
said to be in training and Americans were in- 
formed that "our English sportsmen are in high 
feather over the approaching contest." A grand 
stand capable of accommodating a large audience 
was erected on the grounds at a cost of $1000. 
Excursion trains at low rates were arranged to 
lure visitors from St. Paul, Chicago, Omaha, and 
intermediate points. Some were enthusiastic 
enough to believe that with encouragement from 
the citizens of Le Mars the June races would soon 
bear the same relation to the West that the 
Rochester course did to the East. The English 
colonists made all the preparations for a great 
field day; hotel keepers anticipated the rush of 
business **by getting out their extra cots and look- 
ing up their surplus china"; several hundred in- 
vitations were issued to an evening dancing party 
to be given by the Close brothers; and the first 
game of cricket ever played in the Northwest was 
scheduled for the day after the races. Interest in 
the event increased with the announcement that 
the English had just received direct from Europe 
a thoroughbred racer, raised by Lord Falmouth 
and valued at $25,000.^*^ 



GAMES AND SPORTS 195 

On the morning of June 30th the streets of Le 
Mars presented a circus-day appearance. ''Red 
caps and blue caps, green caps and yellow, could 
be seen filing through the crowds, noise and con- 
fusion was apparent on every hand, and Le Mars 
looked very like a city of the first class rather 
than the third." Le Mars newspapers declared 
that the meeting would long be remembered as one 
of the most stirring days in the history of the city, 
the races were "second to none in the Union", and 
such a scene as people witnessed on the course 
could ' ' certainly not be duplicated anywhere west 
of the herring pond." 

The scene was pictured as ''brilliant in the ex- 
treme, the throng of people, the vehicles of all 
kinds, the brilliant costumes of the ladies, the 
driving, the riding, the music, the fighting, the 
gambling, the drink, the mounted police, the un- 
mounted, ditto; the jockeys, the 'let-her-roll' of 
the man at the wheel, (you were not forbidden to 
speak to this one) all made up a lively panorama 
that only Le Mars and the English Races can 
produce. You could back your fancy to any figure 
you pleased, and the book-makers called the odds 
in the most approved race-course fashion." The 
following account may be taken as typical of the 
way in which the Le Mars Derby was reported for 
a number of years : 



196 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Thursday, the 30th of June, was as beautiful a day 
as the most ardent friend of the English races could 
wish for. The way the crowds poured into the Gate- 
way the night before and all forenoon of that day 
showed that the Lemars turf is rapidly acquiring a 
popularity that extends far beyond the limits of north- 
western Iowa. Eepresentatives from the St. Paul and 
Chicago press proved that the great metropolitan 
dailies regard the Lemars meeting of sufficient im- 
portance to demand their attention, and though the 
dispatches they furnished their respective journals 
were brief, they were both pointed and enthusiastic. 
Special trains were run on all the roads leading to 
Lemars, each bringing its contingent of admirers of 
the manly sport. From Sibley and Sheldon came 
about fifty or sixty, from Cherokee and intervening 
stations nearly a hundred, and from Sioux City not 
far from four hundred visitors, to witness and par- 
ticipate in the day's festivities. 

The race course was in most excellent condition — 
firm as a rock, smooth as a floor and dustless as my 
lady's boudoir. 

By one o'clock the grounds presented 
An Animated Spectacle. 
The grand stand, just completed the day before, and 
through which the cooling breeze playfully filtered, 
was filled to repletion with an anxious, good natured 
and well-dressed assemblage. Scores of elegant turn- 
outs were driving leisurely across and around the 
park. Hundreds on hundreds of men, women and 
children surged hither and thither. Lemonade stands, 
refreshment booths, and the inevitable hazard tables 



GAMES AND SPORTS 197 

were surrounded by throngs anxious to slake their 
thirst, or make a fortune. Brilliantly costumed riders 
dashed hither and thither either to test the mettle of 
their steeds or convey important messages relating 
to the pending contest. The betting men, with hands 
filled with greenbacks, pencil and cards, added to the 
hubbub, by offering to wager in any conceivable way. 
The whole made up a panorama of life, activity and 
sportive energy never before seen on any race course 
in this region. Conspicuous everywhere was the 
omnipresent Englishman, to whom a horse-race is the 
sum total of human enjoyment. The ladies, too, Eng- 
lish and American were present in force, their elegant 
toilets adding picturesqueness to the scene, and their 
sparkling eyes showing how intensely they were in- 
terested in the proceedings.^*^ 

Fully one thousand people were said to be on 
the grounds when the race for the West Fork 
plate was called at one o'clock. This was a mile 
run for horses owned by English residents and 
ridden by English gentlemen. Of nine contenders 
for two prizes of $30 and $10, C. Filer's ''Zoe" 
won first and F. B. Close's "True" won second, 
Grayson's *' Bacchus" being third. Next came a 
half-mile running race of seven ponies owned by 
Englishmen: the first prize of $20 went to A. 
Ridgeway's "Fred Wilson", and the second of 
$5 to Mr. Grouse's "Lady Grace". The Hail 
Columbia Stakes called out only two steeds, the 
property of American citizens: "Kitchen Maid" 



198 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

won $50 for J. C. Kennedy and ''Little Harry" 
$10 for W. M. Blunt. A second pony event for a 
prize of $25 open to Englishmen and Americans 
was won by the former. 

The Le Mars cup race of one mile and a half 
over six flights of hurdles, the main event of the 
day, was open to all comers. In a field of seven 
entries the prize of $70 went easily to an American 
horse, "Sunbeam", ridden by Willie Gaskell, an 
English jockey, Langdon's ''Lena" earning second 
money, and W. B. Close's "Petrarch", winner of 
the previous year, finishing third. Farquhar's 
"Speculation" flew the track at the third hurdle 
and threw its rider without hurting him much. 
The victor was loudly cheered by the men who had 
bet against him as well as by his backers, the 
jockey "winning golden opinions by the choice 
way in which he got away". 

Lovers of horseflesh were afterwards reminded 
of the fact that the year 1881 had proven extreme- 
ly lucky for Americans: "Iroquois" won the 
Epsom Derby, "Foxhall" scooped the Parisian 
Grand Prix, and "Sunbeam" carried the day at 
Le Mars. 

The sixth race was a trotting match between 
the horses of M. Blomefield and F. B. Close, the 
latter winning an easy first. In the International 
Scurry of one mile on the flat, open to all. 



GAMES AND SPORTS 199 

^'Kitchen Maid" triumphed with F. Paley^s 
"Ned" second. Spectators voted the Le Mars 
Derby a great success: the races were put on in 
a masterly way and fairly conducted; "there was 
none of the bickering that has done so much to 
bring the noble sport into disrepute; everything 
went oft' smoothly and swiftly, without useless de- 
lays while judges jangled with jockeys; and losers 
made no outward sign of grief." Some men, of 
course, allowed enthusiasm to get the better of 
their judgment and put up their money on the 
wrong horse."" 

Horsemanship was an accomplishment of which 
nearly all the colonists could boast, men and 
women alike. Thus, on one occasion Mrs. Fred 
Paley, "skilled equestrienne like nearly all Eng- 
lish ladies", was injured while riding. It is said 
that the only Fourth of July feature which at- 
tracted Englishmen at Le Mars was horse racing. 
Also, whenever the Plymouth County Agricultural 
Society held its annual fair in September, they 
could be depended on to enter their horses : at one 
time Fred Close rode a race over three flights of 
hurdles, and despite a bad spill beat Jack Wake- 
field on W. B. Close's "Petrarch", Mr. Eden on 
J. B. Close's gray mare, and F. C. S. Dodsworth 
on Fred Barrow's horse. Autumn races gained 
almost as much popularity as the June Derby : on 



200 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

October 6 and 7, 1881, English horses owned most- 
ly by the Close brothers triumphed in all except 
the main event, the hurdle race for the House of 
Lord's Cup valued at $150. As Yankee horses had 
swept the English turf to the amazement of John 
Bull, so ''our cousins got left last Saturday in a 
way they despise.'"*'' 

There can be little point in referring to all the 
semi-annual meetings of the English Jockey Club 
in the years that followed: newspapers faithfully 
lent their columns to lengthy reports of those ex- 
citing red letter days in June and October when 
only horses held the center of the stage for Amer- 
icans and Englishmen alike. In June, 1882, the 
Grand International Hurdle Race of two miles 
over eight flights of barriers excited the most in- 
tense interest: W. Clowes 's "Badger" with Jack 
Wakefield in the saddle beat Cecil Benson on H. 
Gunner's ''Sportsman" in three minutes and 
twenty-five seconds, two other flyers having bolted 
before the finish. Waddilove, Payne, and W. 
Gladstone captured a good bit of money in later 
years. 

Sometimes races were arranged on the spur of 
the moment, as when James Close beat his brother, 
Fred, in August, 1882 ; and sometimes horses were 
matched to run for special side bets or purses. 
Sometimes English horses also appeared in races 



GAMES AND SPORTS 201 

elsewhere, as at the Woodbury County fair in 
Sioux City, Council Bluffs, or Chicago, where R. 
Jervis's *' Nippon" won $250; and in September, 
1884, they were invited by Fred B. Close to the 
Pipestone Jockey Club's first meeting. ^''^ 

Although horse racing proved to be the most 
spectacular form of excitement from the onlook- 
er's point of view, other sports furnished the 
participants an opportunity to match their physi- 
cal skill and strength. The Le Mars Athletic Club 
was soon formed. Many times the English boys 
showed their prowess in athletic sports: at the 
county fair in 1881 they held a field tourney and 
track meet, each person paying fifty cents for 
entering an event and the winner obtaining a cup 
as the prize. Handicap races, as for members of 
the Prairie Club over thirty years of age, were 
popular affairs. One year later, at the October 
meeting of the Le Mars Jockey Club they staged 
another program of running and field events in 
which the following men took part : A. C. Colledge, 
D. Gr. Phenhallagan, J. Hope, C. L. Robertson, J. 
B. Close, Capt. Robinson, C. H. Grolightly, F. 
Payne, L. H. Collins, M. Farquhar, F. S. Jen- 
nings, J. Black, and A. H. Paget.^*^ 

The game of lacrosse was also played with 
spirit;^** and ice hockey must have offered a sur- 
feit of sport during the long winter months. At 



202 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Adams's rink the boys of Seney matched 'their 
wits against a team from Le Mars and won a 
series ; and city versus comitry also provoked the 
keenest rivalry.^*^ Nor were friendly encomiters 
on the la^vn tennis court neglected: cricket and 
tennis were played on alternate Saturdays in 1882 ; 
and five j^ears later the Le Mars Lawn Tennis 
Club prepared for the tournament at Spirit Lake 
and planned a club house.'''"' 

Unfortunately no stream or body of water at 
or near Le Mars was adequate enough to satisfy 
the craving of the English for boat racing. In 
July, 1884, a score of English ladies and gentle- 
men whiled away some time at Spirit Lake which 
had already acquired a reputation as a summer 
resort. The English visitors made themselves con- 
spicuous by appearing at dinner in full evening 
dress and also by putting on some exciting boat 
races. The Hon. R. C. Jervis beat A. C. Colledge 
in the single sculls ; J. M. C. Walkinshaw and Jer- 
vis defeated J. Dawson and Colledge in the double 
sculls; and the big event in which four double 
sculls were entered was won by F. E. Romanes 
and Jervis over A. C. and A. R. Colledge, Lord 
Hobart and J. Dawson, and C. F. Benson and J. 
M. C. Walkinshaw, ladies coxing the boats. So 
great was A. C. Colledge 's fondness for the sport 
that in the autumn of 1884 he returned to England 



GAMES AND SPORTS 203 

to train with his old rowing club at Henley for the 
championship of the w^orld.^^^ 

It is alleged that Fred B. Close, who came to 
America in 1872, was the first polo player in the 
United States. If that claim can not be sub- 
stantiated, he it was who introduced the game at 
Le Mars and organized the Northwestern Polo 
League in 1885, other clubs being formed at Blair 
and Omaha, Nebraska, at Yankton and Sioux 
Falls, South Dakota, and at Onawa, Cherokee, 
Sioux City, Salix, Sloan, and Council Bluffs in 
Iowa. The association's challenge cup was three 
times won by Le Mars. 

Cow ponies proved themselves very adept, alert, 
and intelligent companions to their riders in this 
game ; but in a match between Sioux City and Le 
Mars in June, 1890, there was a collision or rather 
an attempt by one pony to hurdle another which 
cut across its path, resulting in the death of the 
Sioux City captain, Fred B. Close. The unfor- 
tunate man had but recently returned from Eng- 
land with a shoulder badly bruised in hunting — 
with upper arm strapped to his body and only the 
hand free to drive, he was unable to manage his 
mount well enough to avoid the accident which led 
to his death before the eyes of Mrs. Close. Among 
the participants in this contest at Crescent Park, 
Sioux City, w^ere Jack Watson, A. C. Colledge, G. 



204 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

C. Maclagan, and Count von Mueller for Le Mars 
and Henry Drake for Sioux City. Polo in this 
region lasted until the year 1898 by which time 
Britishers had been pretty well displaced by 
younger American players whom they had well 
tutored in this as in all other lines of sport. Thus, 
in the match between Le Mars and St. Louis in 
1893 G. C. Maclagan 's American team-mates were 
Ed Dalton and the Sammis brothers.^^^ 

Rugby football also served as an outlet for sur- 
plus energy among the English colonists. The 
boys at West Fork or Quorn challenged all comers 
in the autumn of 1881, and a big game was sched- 
uled for November 19th. At another time More- 
ton's ''pups", old and new, played the Le Mars 
club ; and in connection with the races in October, 
1882, a most exciting game occurred between Le 
Mars and a picked team from West Fork and 
Akron. 

It was also reported that football as played by 
our English cousins resembled ''for all the world 
an Arkansas rough-and-tumble free fight", a^^d 
accidents were by no means uncommon. Gr. C. 
Maclagan was thrown at one time and received a 
fractured collar bone, which, like a dislocated 
joint, a newspaper reporter declared to be "a 
heavy price to pay for a game." The description 
of one thrilling match between the two teams 



GAMES AND SPORTS 205 

above referred to may well be taken as a typical 
English account of ''rugger": 

The Gateway team on Saturday avenged their de- 
feats of six months ago. The visiting team was voted 
a good one but the absence of such men as Crawley, 
Garnett, Benson shook the faith of many persons as 
to the ability of the "Portlands" to pull through 
victorious. About 150 spectators assembled to witness 
the struggle, the fairer sex mustering in very good 
force. Only twelve men a side could be mustered and 
as soon as the preliminaries of the match were ar- 
ranged the United team turned their backs to the 
wind and Paget, kicking off, started the game at 
twelve minutes after four. Walkinshaw was at once 
called upon to handle the leather and made a good 
run but on being collared by Paget passed cleverly to 
Thomson, who, however, was stopped by Colledge. 
The first scrimmage was formed in the city limits but 
the home forwards loosing out took the ball by a 
series of short rushes to the half way flag. Soon after 
this Osmanston made a splendid run and succeeded 
in gaining a try, the place by Paget proving a failure. 
After the drop out F. Close got away with the ball 
and made a rare run passing to Waddilove who nearly 
got in but was well tackled by J. D. Chiene within 20 
feet of the city's goal line. A splendid rush by the 
Lemars forwards led by Farquhar and Colledge made 
matters look better for their side and the play was 
transferred to midfield. Here Walkinshaw made a 
brilliant run, and the Cheshireman was only held and 
that after a great exertion by Paget within a few 
yards of the goal line. Unfortunately in the fall 



206 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Walkinshaw was so much injured as to place him 
''hors de combat." The united team, now weakened 
by the loss of the valuable services of their captain, 
lost ground steadily, the game being principally con- 
tested from this point up to half time in the visitors' 
quarters. 

Ends were now changed and after an interval of 
five minutes Hewett kicked off on behalf of Portland, 
Colledge with one of his powerful runs taking the 
leather into the enemy's quarters. At this point an- 
other of the visitors, A. Grey, retired, and although 
fighting against odds the united team seemed deter- 
mined to score playing fast and loose in the scrim- 
mage, Hewett and Christian being particularly con- 
spicuous but the home i/^ backs, Paget and Osmans- 
ton's brilliant runs drove them back, and soon after 
Paget gained a try goal. The ball had no sooner been 
started from the centre than Colledge and Kollo put 
in some fine play, and the last named, passing to 
Paget, the home team's I/2 back, effected a fine run in, 
securing a try, but the place by Colledge failed. Wad- 
dilove and Capt. Robinson put in some fine work after 
this, but Lemars carried the scrimmages and A. Paget 
cleverly obtained a try which he easily converted into 
a goal. The visitors starting again with a splendid 
kick off by Hewett, paid a short visit to the city 
quarters, where a series of scrimmages took place in 
dangerous proximity to the goal line. No point of 
interest occurred up to the call of time, when Lemars 
was declared the winners by two goals, two tries, 
to nil. 



GAMES AND SPORTS 207 

TEAMS LEMARS 

J. D. Chiene, back; A. C. Colledge, E. EoUo, three- 
quarter backs; Osmanston, A. Paget, one-half backs; 
Brown, A. C. Sinclair, Sturgess, H. Tarleton, A. J. 
Colledge, J. G. Hope, Ed Anderson, forwards. 

WEST FORK AND AKRON 

D. Maclaren, back; J. Walkinshaw, A. C. Waddi- 
love, three-quarter backs; Capt. Robinson, F. Close, 
one-half backs; C. Hewett, E. Mansel, Thomson, P. 
Wraight, H. Christian, A. Grey, W. W. Figgis, W. H. 
Stevens, forwards.^^^ 

Although young Britishers were not as plentiful 
in and about Le Mars in later years, one of the 
most enjoyed occasions during their sojourn was 
the long-planned celebration of Queen Victoria's 
jubilee in June, 1887 — seven days being devoted 
to the great event. On the second day came the 
Derby at the fair grounds, with the men dressed 
"in jockey caps, flaring scarlet shirts, and black 
knickerbockers on their high-mettled horses." 
English ladies drove through the streets, according 
to one description, '4n queer little carts, or, if on 
foot, they invariably carry canes and are followed 
by a parcel of dogs, generally small grey hounds. 
The English flag floats everywhere, English airs 
are tooted and drummed in all directions, and the 
English accent is heard on every hand.""* 

Two thousand people, British and Americans, 
turned out to see the pony races, the jubilee handi- 



208 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

cap of six furlongs on the flat, and the West Fork 
plate which Fred Close won riding his own horse. 
With more races on two other days, including a 
tandem race with six entries, the Jockey Club was 
reported as having had the best day in its history. 
There was also a "tug of war" between England 
and Ireland: A. C. Colledge, E. Nesfield, F. Veal, 
E. Sturgess, H. Hawtrey, and Fred Close versus 
J. T. Mahan, C. Sinclair, Tom Dowglass, D. John- 
son, D. Warren, and vS. Dundas, the latter win- 
ning. Then a similar event took place between 
Americans and Scotchmen, "the Highlanders", A. 
Weir, Albert Farquhar, Guy Elliott, R. Reade, 
and F. Carmichael losing. In the final tug between 
the winners the Americans beat the Irish. 

The polo match for the championship of the 
Northwest afforded lots of excitement: Captain 
Orde, Carmichael, W. Gaskell, and Fred Close for 
Sibley versus Captain Maclagan, Watson, Henry 
Moreton, and O. T. Pardoe for Le Mars, the latter 
winning three to one. There was also a tennis 
tournament in both singles and doubles with the 
following entries: A., J., and W. Farquhar, J. F. 
Carver, J. Douglas, A. Dent, E. Winstanley, A. H. 
Paget, H. Eller, A. C. Colledge, Tom Aldersey, R. 
Walker, W. Payne, Logan, and F. E. Romanes, 
Joe Farquhar winning the singles. Two cricket 
matches between Le Mars and visiting Britishers 



GAMES AND SPORTS 209 

were won by the visitors Drake, Payne, Scougel, 
Croft, Sinclair, Medd, Wesfield, Logan, Graham, 
Eustace, Tiffney, Paget, and A. Farquhar. With 
a grand ball at Apollo Hall, the week's jubilee 
festivities were voted a brilliant success, and may 
be taken as a fitting conclusion of the account of 
their doings on the playgrounds of northwestern 
Iowa."= 



XIX 

SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 
AMERICAN 

To mitigate the tedium of existence in the first 
years of any newly opened region, saloons in con- 
siderable numbers played a rough but very im- 
portant part. Le Mars was no exception to the 
rule; and during the first few years of the Eng- 
lish occupation saloons were named especially to 
attract Englishmen, such as the ''House of Lords", 
the "House of Commons", and "Windsor Palace". 
In a letter to the editor of a local newspaper, as 
early as June, 1880, the writer asked if "some- 
thing caimot be done to abate that miserable 
nuisance styled the 'House of Lords'." Going 
home from church on Sunday, he had seen 
twelve drunken young men in front of the place 
and through the open door he saw a number of 
women inside "jerking 'drinks for the ungodly 
loafers who were reveling there". The editor 
replied : 

The House of Lords has already won an unsavory 
reputation, and we hope that its flagrant violation of 
all law and all decency will be the cause of its speedy 



210 



SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 211 

collapse .... Why, the Liberal has been taken to 
task .... because it mentions the drunken sprees of 
the silly English lads who have come over here to get 
from under parental restraint. 

Seven of these boys were alleged to have 
marched through town and jokingly to have 
broken the lamp which stood in front of the Meth- 
odist Church, ''howling, yelping, singing, cursing, 
and otherwise scandalising this community". A 
few days later, four of the "blatant, mouthy 
young lads whose sense of decency and propriety 
has been sadly damaged in their making" called 
on the editor to get an apology and threatened 'Ho 
bust his bloody blarsted head" if he refused. In 
an attempt to carry out the threat on the street 
one day, the editor was rescued by three business 
men from Jack Wakefield who had been delegated 
to trounce him with a horse whip. Not long after- 
ward someone wrote that, save for the howling and 
carousing of the young bloods, the town had been 
remarkably quiet for some time past; but like 
Baltimore roughs or New York rats, they had 
given Le Mars a goodly portion of vice and 
revelry, and fear was expressed that a repetition 
of the occurrence "would end only in a young 
Bunker Hill".^^^ 

Under the headline, "War between the Races", 
a Sioux City newspaper referred to the troubles 



212 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

at Le Mars. Speaking of the large number of 
young Englishmen there, it added: 

They are "gentlemen's" sons, have plenty of 
money, a superabundance of animal spirits, and being 
a thousand miles away from home and among stran- 
gers, go in for what with them constitutes a "good 
time", with little regard to what people generally may 
think of their actions. They accept as a literal fact 
that this is the "land of the free", and are disposed 
to govern themselves accordingly. At Le Mars they 
have carried this principle so far, that the Liberal has 
on several occasions chided them in no endearing 
terms, and its issue of this week goes for the "drunk- 
en thugs", as it is pleased to call the young Britons 
in severe style. The charges preferred embrace about 
all the sins enumerated in the decalogue, and the paper 
has assumed to be speaking the sentiment of an out- 
raged community.^" 

The two newspapers of Le Mars seem to have 
taken opposite sides on the matter, the editors 
having no love for each other, as one may gather 
from this scathing bit of journalism: 

The terrific swagger, and fierce know-nothing bull- 
dozing with which C. F. Leidy of the Liberal, tried to 
snuff out the English Colonists of this count}^ a year 
ago stands in painful contrast to the ineffable toady- 
ism with which he is now fawning at their feet. It 
will be remembered that his outrageous calumnies of 
the new comers caused a few of them to pick him up 
one morning in front of Allison's drug store, and 



SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 213 

give him such a trouncing that it took ten days of 
lotions, liniments, pills and plasters to recuperate his 
exhausted energies. The licking had the effect of 
transforming the rampageous bull-dog to a whining 
spaniel, so that now instead of tearing the ''cussed 
furriners," to pieces, he is their most unctuous syco- 
phant. Leidy does not seem to understand, that to 
any well balanced mind, a bully and a parasite are 
equally detestable, and that Englishmen are pro- 
verbially intolerant of both. Their scorn for a vapor- 
ing blusterer is only equalled by their contempt for 
a servile lick-spittle.^^^ 

The ''House of Lords" with its imported liquor, 
English ale and porter, and a special locker-room 
served as a sort of nois}^ club house for the young- 
er Englishmen. The story goes that the first rural 
telephone in Plymouth County connected Captain 
Moreton's barn and this saloon for the special 
accommodation of his pupils; and that on one 
occasion Jack Wakefield, to be served at the bar 
in true Wild West style, rode a pony into the 
"House of Lords". That these boys sometimes 
encountered the opposition of Yankees of their 
own age is evident from the following newspaper 
account : 

A Young Englishman and a couple of chaps from 
the country got up a good sized show on Tuesday 
afternoon. They had all been taking budge pro- 
miscuously, when one of the country lads thought to 
make it interesting by giving the Englishman a clip 



214 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

behind the lug, which he proceeded to do, and then 
lit out at a 2:40 gait. The Englishman followed to 
the street, but got hold of the other chap and warmed 
his ears with a pair of beer mugs. Then there was a 
flight to a saloon and a three-cornered bombardment 
of beer glasses and knuckles ensued, after which there 
was another retreat, and the pale air was streaked 
with cuss-words, while the claret flowed freely down 
the necks of the combatants. No arrests.^^*^ 

The agitation in Iowa caused by the prohibition 
question early in the year 1882 roused violent de- 
bate at Le Mars because it was freely predicted 
that prohibition would ''knock the hind-sights off 
of immigration" to the State — an objection which 
''the goody-good people who want to transmogrify 
our State into a grand, perennial Sunday-school 
ought to think of".''^'' If the amendment to the 
Constitution should carry, rumor prophesied that 
the English w^ould take their departure. Prohibi- 
tion won the day in Iowa as a whole and also at 
Le Mars, "a whiskey town" with fifteen saloons.^" 
When the district court at Davenport declared the 
amendment unconstitutional in October, 1882, and 
the Supreme Court affirmed that decision in Janu- 
ary, 1883, great rejoicing prevailed in certain 
quarters at Le Mars and saloons were again freely 
patronised. It was on this occasion that Charles 
Dacres, English editor of the Lemars Truth, wrote 
in serio-comic vein: 



SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 215 

Are you allowed to talk on the streets at night? is 
a question I would like to have solved: The other 
evening on the closing of the House of Lords, I was 
standing with four or five friends talking when the 
deputy marshal comes up and requests me in his 
usually suave manner to "cheese this racket." 

Liberty is constantly jammed down your throat 
here, but it seems to me an exploded theory, when an 
officer can do what he likes with your right of speech. 
Talking, I should think, is not a crune in the eyes of 
the law, unless the noise disturbs the sleep of others 
and the blizzard that w^as blowing on this particular 
night would have drowned even J. C. Morris' sten- 
torian vocal organs.^®^ 

Saloons were later closed in accordance with the 
prohibitory statute of 1884; but the ''House of 
Lords" was afterwards accused of violating the 

That many American ways and institutions 
rubbed English colonists against the grain there 
is little doubt. Fourth of July celebrations and 
American spread-eaglism found no favor among 
them ; and when some of the bolder young fellows 
attempted to raise the English flag on Indepen- 
dence Day, it is said, a good-sized riot or worse 
was narrowly averted. Another thing that caused 
these people to marvel at the time of an election 
for school directors was the fact that Americans 
were "always voting for somebody". When 



216 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

British residents became naturalized and exercised 
the privilege of voting, a large majority affiliated 
with the Democratic Party because Republicans 
were not popular in England/^^ 

What must have been particularly foreign to 
English tastes was the American newspaper of the 
region with its lack of foreign news and humor 
and its abundance of sensations and gossipy "per- 
sonals". Accordingly, they subscribed for the 
London Times and Punch and other papers, tried 
and true. Herbert Cope, the colony's tea im- 
porter, presented a Le Mars editor with copies of 
these English journals from time to time which 
caused that gentleman to write for the benefit of 
his readers: 

They present no peculiarity aside from their sombre 
and stately demeanor, if we may so express ourself. 
An English paper looks so solemn as an owl, never 
indulges in levity, and is always as dignified as a 
judge delivering a charge. Even their comic papers 
have a quaint, heavy, solemn look that almost dis- 
courages the lithesome, rattleheaded American whose 
intellectual viands must be served up in gilded gob- 
lets so to say, and yield their essence at a glance.^^^ 

Despite the fact that the newspapers at Le Mars 
gathered and published information relating to 
the colonists individually and collectively, thus 
enabling them to keep in touch with one another 
even if they did so by means of frequent and in- 



SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 217 

timate social relations, Englishmen in this region 
soon came to have an organ of their own. Charles 
E. Dacres, who had gained some experience as an 
amateur journalist on board a British man-of- 
war, first issued what he named The Indian Creek 
Gazette. In February, 1882, he came to Le Mars 
and began taking subscriptions for The Coloyiy 
Sketch. When it came from the press, an Amer- 
ican editor described it as ''a daisy in full bloom", 
*'a creditable and spicy little sheet", and wished it 
success. Featuring especially Mrs. Paley's sketch- 
es and ''Mercator's" letters, the paper circulated 
most among the English whom it was designed to 
interest and amuse.^^^ 

The youthful editor in one issue propounded 
and answered at great length the all-important 
question whether Englishmen should invest their 
money in northwestern Iowa: he cautioned his 
countrymen against tackling too much land or 
squandering their wealth on costly homes, and 
suggested larger expenditures on all kinds of live 
stock. From this attempt to do his bit as an 
economist and financial adviser he turned his at- 
tention fearlessly to civic ideals at Le Mars: 

It is a highly discreditable fact that the alleys of 
Lemars are in a disgusting condition. Many of them 
are blockaded with filth, from which arises malaria 
in diverse forms, to say nothing of the offensive 



218 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

smells that come therefrom, and the obstruction to 
the passage of vehicles and pedestrians. The atten- 
tion of the council has been called to this matter here- 
tofore, and it is time that something be done.^" 

This editorial found so much favor with an 
American editor that the city hall crowd was 
treated to the following outburst of newspaper 
sarcasm : 

Fie, fie on you Mr. Sketch. Don't you know that 
we have a reform council, and a reform mayor and 
that everything is done that ought to be done, and 
whatever is not done is omitted in accordance with 
the grand underlying ideas that grandly underlie re- 
forms and reformers? *' Filth," "malaria," and 
** offensive smells," are all right provided they are 
reform ''filth," reform ''malaria," and reform 
"smells." In city matters we are enjoying simple 
"reform;" in county matters, it is "whisky, oysters 
and reform. ' ' Go easy, Mr. Sketch. Speak reverently 
of the local powers that be — for they are all "re- 
form. ' ' 

The name of the English paper underwent an- 
other change before the year 1882 ended: its 
American rival in the field welcomed The Lemars 
Truth as follows: 

Mr. Dacres has associated with him E. E. Bradley 
in the editorial management. Of Mr. B. we know 
nothing, but Charlie Dacres swings a lively and pun- 
gent quill, which insures a spicy paper .... We wish 
it abundant success.^^* 



SALOONS AND OTHER THINGS 219 

Due to failing health Charles Dacres announced 
the discontinuance of his venture after ten months' 
publication. The subsequent career of Dacres, 
while not brilliant, was at least lurid to a high 
degree. He celebrated his twenty-sixth birthday 
by having his ''friends in" to help. As a member 
of ''The Wide Awake Hose Company", while ex- 
tinguishing a fire, he fell from the roof and suf- 
fered injuries that kept him in bed a considerable 
time. He is also credited with having been editor 
of The Lemars World and The Mirror,^^^ 

After thirty-one attempts had been made to lay 
the town in ashes and Le Mars had suffered 
$100,000 in fire losses in two years, suspicion 
pointed to young Dacres : indeed, while serving as 
editor of The Glohe, he was arrested, indicted for 
arson, tried, and acquitted. And upon being ac- 
cused by The Sentinel of defending ''theft and 
rascality as well as bummerism", he retaliated by 
bringing an action for libel for $5000. This only 
led the defendant to take another thrust at "the 
pure and spotless Dacres ' ', and when Mrs. Dacres ' 
name was dragged into the scandal two years later, 
the young man went to the editor in good temper 
and declared that the newspaper had done his wife 
a great injustice : he admitted he had been wild in 
his time, but claimed that Mrs. Dacres had stood 
by him with a loyalty commanding admiration. 



220 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

and had always been an influence with him for 
good. 

In the summer of 1887 Dacres, as editor of The 
Globe, issued a daily journal during the week's 
celebration of Queen Victoria's jubilee."" 



XX 

SOCIAL LIFE: THE PRAIRIE CLUB 

Social life in the English colony does not seem 
to have suffered seriously from the fact that its 
particii:)ants, trained in the best traditions of Eng- 
land, had been transplanted to a frontier country. 
Their workaday duties as farmers and business 
men did not prevent them, however widely scat- 
tered throughout several counties, from continuing 
the customs and habits so thoroughly acquired in 
Old England. Although they never attained any 
startling numerical strength as compared with 
their American neighbors, the English made their 
presence felt in no uncertain way. Those who cut 
themselves off from their countrymen in north- 
western Iowa must have felt like exiles among 
strangers and life to them must have lacked the 
sunshine of sociability: they could not enjoy the 
priceless advantage of being among people of 
their own tastes and home associations. It is well 
known how young Englishmen have adapted them- 
selves to all sorts of conditions in every part of 
the world; l3ut whether they maintained their 



221 



222 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

reputation in that respect in Iowa there are at 
least some reasons to doubt. 

One of the most flourishing social institutions of 
the city of Le Mars for many years was the 
Prairie Club founded by Englishmen shortly be- 
fore New Year's, 1881, at Captain Moreton's Dro- 
more Farm. Present at the first meeting were 
M. J. Chapman, A. Ronaldson, H. J. Moreton, 
Arthur Gee, A. R. T. Dent, Lord Hobart, Captain 
Moreton, Captain P. R. Robinson, H. A. and J. G. 
Watson, A. C. Colledge, J. H. Preston, F, R. Price, 
G. C. Maclagan, W. Stubbs, T. Dealtry, M. B. 
Dodsworth, C. Eller, and O. T. Raymond. Elegant 
rooms in the business block built by Frank C. Cob- 
den, an Englishman of means, became the club's 
home on December 17, 1881, its inauguration be- 
ing marked by a conversazione to which a number 
of friends received special invitations. Shortly 
after prohibition went into effect in 1882 the club 
rooms underwent improvements that added "vast- 
ly to their elegant appearance and not a little to 
their convenience". According to a contempora- 
neous account of the event: 

This club is composed entirely of English residents 
who have thus banded together for mutual pleasure 
and profit and in the arrangement and decoration of 
their apartments have spared no expense. The apart- 
ments of the club consist in all of five large rooms, 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 223 

the parlors and writing rooms being particularly 
noticeable for their beautiful furniture and fine finish. 
In the first of these rooms is a fine billiard table of 
the latest improved manufacture, elegantly up- 
holstered easy chairs, sofas, etc. In the room just 
back of this and into which it opens through large 
folding doors is another room corresponding in size 
and finish with the first. Here are books, magazines, 
papers, etc. This room is also supplied with tables, 
easy chairs and lamps and affords a very pleasant 
place in which to while away an hour or two. Direct- 
ly back of this room is a smaller room very finely 
finished and furnished with writing desks and writing 
material. The sample or refreshment room is located 
just at the right of the main entrance and is supplied 
almost exclusively with imported goods. The sleeping 
apartments are just across the hall from the refresh- 
ment room and are very neatly furnished. All have 
been arranged with an eye to comfort as well as 
beauty and are under the management of some of the 
leading English residents. At present, we learn, the 
club has about forty-five members and is in a very 
flourishing condition both socially and financially .^^^ 

A special event in the early history of the club 
was the entertainment contributed by the Prairie 
Minstrels, an organization of the younger mem- 
bers whose musical talent simply had to find ex- 
pression: H. Rickards, piano; C. H. Eccles, flute; 
F. E. Romanes, violin ; B. H. Thomson, violincello ; 
W. H. Stevens, banjo ; James Douglas, drum ; Jack 
Walkinshaw, bones; J. H. Grayson, triangle; C. 



224 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

E. Dacres, tamborine ; F. Horsburgh, A. W. Mait- 
land, D. Hewett, E. F. Robertson, F. R. Price, and 
Richard Walker, voice. 

After some rehearsing, the Prairie Minstrels 
emerged '4n all the glory of burnt cork and col- 
lars a yard long", played to the Prairie Club and 
then to the public in Apollo Hall, and later 
showered their melody on neighboring towns. At 
a later date the English boys were declared a suc- 
cess also as ''Home Minstrels". As the Le Mars 
Dramatic Company they appeared at Sheldon and 
Sibley where their English friends banqueted 
them royally."^ 

The Prairie Club became well-known to Amer- 
icans for its courtesy and hospitality. Its social 
evenings and other gatherings attained wide popu- 
larity among those who were so fortunate as to be 
invited. Every year, on the anniversary of the 
club's founding, each member invited an American 
as guest for the birthday celebration. In recog- 
nition of these repeated courtesies, Americans in 
1885 tendered their English hosts a dimier-dance 
at the Le Mars hotel. The remarks made by 
Colonel Emery in his address to the gentlemen of 
the club and their response as publicly reported 
are worthy of repetition here : 

You came among us when the grasshopper was a 
burden, when the outlook for this beautiful northwest 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 225 

was anything but flattering, but bringing with you 
financial ability and social worth and putting these 
factors into immediate and effective use, you were in- 
strumental largely in saving us from financial em- 
barrassment, and forming a social attachment un- 
sullied. You have also manifested your social ability 
by throwing open the doors of your club parlors to 
our citizens, and giving us delightful entertainment 
and social intercourse, and to more fully reciprocate 
your kindness, your American friends of Le Mars 
have tendered this social reception and trust that it 
may be an oasis in the memory of all. Allow me, Mr. 
President, to present to you this banner in behalf of 
your American friends, and as it decorates the walls 
of your club room with its letters of gold and appear- 
ance of beauty may the golden chord of friendship 
encircle us for time infinitum. 

Mr. Garnett, vice-president of the Prairie club, in 
the absence of President Eccles, accepted the banner, 
in a few well chosen words in substance as follows: 
That it afforded him great pleasure in behalf of his 
club to accept this emblem of friendship from Amer- 
ican friends; that this elegant reception and musical 
and social entertainment could only more closely 
cement the tie of friendship, which already existed; 
that his people have no reason to regret coming here, 
and as this was to be the future home of many of them 
the evening's manifestation of good feeling could only 
tend to bring the people of the two lands nearer to- 
gether; and that the occasion would be long remem- 
bered and his trust was that the future might be as 
fruitful of pleasures as the present and the past. He 



226 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

spoke with much feeling and closed with a proposal 
of three cheers for the American friends. Mr. Chap- 
man proposed three cheers for the ladies and Col. 
Emery suggested that all unite in three cheers for the 
old and new country. The thunders that followed 
made numerous and sundry of the regular guests of 
the hotel to turn over in their beds and wonder if it 
was a baby cyclone or a London edition of dynamiting. 
Many then departed for home, others repaired again 
to the dancing hall spending two hours or more in 
revelry of musical motion — and thus ended an event 
that makes a new era in the fellowship between Eng- 
land and America in Le Mars.^" 

Down to the year 1892 the Prairie Club admit- 
ted to membership only those who were or had 
been British subjects, the entrance fee being $25 
and annual dues about as much more. As the 
club's numbers dwindled, it was decided to admit 
Americans as ''sustaining members":^"'' the latter 
have in fact enabled the organization to survive 
until to-day, but with prohibition in force the club 
is not what it was in the olden days. 

From the beginning of the English settlement 
dancing parties were a frequent feature of the 
social life. The Closes and their friends enjoyed 
the ball room at Le Mars, especially in the winter 
months of 1880. On one occasion the Closes 
chartered an engine and coach to convey from 
Sioux City certain guests invited to a festival at 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 227 

the Albion House. Nor were masquerades un- 
common. As a charming close to the Le Mars 
Races in June, 1881, the Close brothers gave a 
''Soiree Dansante" to visiting friends. A news 
item of the day told of the event as follows : 

The invited guests gathered in the brilliantly light- 
ed room, the north wall of which w^as draped with 
American and English flags. In the southeast corner 
a boudoir was extemporized, iii which a fine collation 
was served. About sixty couples were present, among 
whom we noticed, besides the English ladies and 
gentlemen, W. H. Dent and wife, P. F. Dalton and 
wife. Miss Jennie Buchanan — all of Lemars. From 
Sioux City we noted Judge Allison, wife and daugh- 
ters, Fannie and Hattie; Miss Goewey; Miss Pease; 
Miss Davis ; Miss Cornish ; Miss Weare ; S. M. Marsh ; 
J. H. Bolton ; A. J. Moore ; F. D. Peters ; C. M. Swan ; 
W. H. Beck ; and Ehla Allen of St. Paul. Music was 
furnished by the Sioux City Quadrille Band. The 
gentlemen were dressed in the most approved style 
prevailing at English evening parties, and the ladies 
wore the rich and varied toilets, it is their privilege 
to assume. The dance was entered into with spirit, 
and at an early hour the party broke up, with a lively 
sense of the generosity and urbanity of their hosts.^^^ 

The Le ^lars Jockey Club very frequently end- 
ed an exciting day of races in June or October 
with a grand race ball. 

Sometimes the colonists came from the four 
corners to picnic together. Thus, one day in July 



228 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

a merry cavalcade led by a four-in-hand drove 
north down Main Street, ''Jack Wakefield wind- 
ing the horn and waking the echoes in old English 
style", all seeking the cool shades of Payne's 
grove. Mr. and Mrs. A. Ronaldson, as host and 
hostess, were ably assisted by the Eller brothers; 
''and never did the festal bowers of this popular 
picnic ground witness a jollier gathering." Be- 
sides those mentioned there were present the Mor- 
gans, Hirsts, Chapmans, Humbles, Bensons, and 
the Messrs. F. B. Close, Christian, Desmoulins, 
Ewen, Farquhar, Gaskell, Grayson, Grouse, Mac- 
lagan, Pale}^, Rickards, Romanes, Wakefield, 
Walker, Warren, Watson, and Wilde. "After the 
wants of the inner man had been supplied, the 
woods became vocal with the songs of merrie Eng- 
land, and in the lull of lively carols reminis- 
cences of the tight little Isle were indulged in, and 
memories of happy gatherings were recalled." 

Quite extraordinary was the amount of travel- 
ing back and forth between England and the Le 
Mars colony. William B. Close and his bride 
journeyed to the former's old home on business 
and pleasure bent. Jack Wakefield always re- 
turned "hale, hearty and happy as of yore", 
though his friends feared once that his vessel had 
gone down. John Hopkinson also found time one 
winter to visit old scenes. A delegation of healthy. 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 229 

substantial, well-to-do looking English settlers 
from Tete des Morts, Canada, came to look at the 
colony in March, 1881. Two brothers came to see 
John Mibie of the Hawks Nest, and Captain Stur- 
gess also visited his friends. Accompanying Mr. 
Sykes who left Manchester to inspect his holdings 
in Lyon County in the spring of 1881, John Brooks 
Close called upon his brothers at Le Mars. 

In April almost every year Admiral Farquhar 
of Her Majesty's Navy journeyed to visit his 
daughter and six sons Albert, Joseph, Mowbray, 
Will, Charles, and James on his farm; and Cap- 
tain Moreton, also formerly in the Royal Navy, 
entertained for him. Adair Colpoys, while on a 
visit to his old friend Herbert Cope with whom 
he had spent years in the Far East, decided to 
make his home in Le Mars. On their American 
tour Lord and Lady Harris included the colony 
where her brothers, the Jervis boys, w^ere pupils 
of Captain Moreton. Great was the disappoint- 
ment when the Duke of Sutherland passed through 
Le Mars without stopping to call upon his fellow 
countrymen. Lord Carlin, however, did better; 
and the Earl of Dunmore promised to look over 
the country before going extensively into the stock 
business. During her stay Lady Howard addressed 
the people of the Congregational Church. Lord 
Hobart, "a real live scion of the English nobility". 



230 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

after a few years' residence at Le Mars, left in 
1885 to enter the British army for service in the 
Soudan, a large number of friends bidding him 
farewell."^ 

At various times visits were paid to the mother 
country, England or Scotland, by such colonists 
as W. x\. Paulton, G. C. Maclagan, H. Rickards, 
F. C. S. Dodsworth ('Svhose eccentricities, reck- 
lessness, and genial nature had made him a general 
favorite"), J. H. Grayson, H. J. M. Dalton, A. 
W. Maitland (another ]3opular youth), J. C. 
Cooper, Charles Eller (i-eturning with his sister), 
Henry and Reginald Moreton, and '^four as good 
fellows as the English colony could boast", Fred 
Horsburgh, H. Hillyard, Major Brockbank, and 
Tom Dowglass. Some of these gentlemen returned 
with brides, others with friends to join the colony. 
At least one Englishman, Herbert Cope, ''a very 
intelligent and practical agriculturist and shrew^d 
business man", who went to England to look after 
his affairs there and in China, brought his family 
back to Le Mars a year later, having found the 
old world not so attractive as he anticipated. 

Of visiting within the colony there was not a 
little. Percy Prescott ''had a large gathering of 
the boys" at his home between Alton and Orange 
City in Sioux County; and the Close brothers 
after removing to Sibley and Pipestone sometimes 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 231 

came as the guests of their friends at Le Mars, 
as did other English people from those towns and 
Sioux City and Akron, although English residents 
in the latter place very early scattered to the four 
quarters of the globe. At one time many of the 
colonists journeyed to Sioux City to hear their 
comitr^inan, Oscar Wilde, ' ' the great aesthete ' '. 

Especially enjoyable was the journey of a dele- 
gation in 1881 to take Christmas dimier with a 
number of British brethren at Florence, Kansas: 
after a sumptuous repast, including Budweiser 
and English bottled ale, came a toast to Queen 
Victoria and the national anthem, followed by 
toasts to ''The President of the United States", 
"The Ladies", and "Absent Friends". Montague 
Chapman of Le Mars then "made a neat little 
speech stating that, while the colony at that place 
numbered about 600, and was probably the strong- 
est in the United States, their organization or 
club of sixty members was far behind what he had 
seen here, and could not get up such a dinner as 
they had just enjoyed." Mr. Colledge, having re- 
ceived vociferous applause for his singing, ren- 
dered several encores."'^ A few days later the 
guests while touring New" Mexico were made the 
theme of a newspaper story: 

The Pacific express Avas detained in Raton several 
hours on Monday which gave us an opportunity for 



232 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

maldng the acquaintance of a jolly party of British- 
ers, a delegation from the famous English colony at 
Lemars, Iowa. The delegation consisted of Mr. M. 
J. Chapman, Secretary of the Colony, and his wife; 
Messrs. H. A. Watson, A. C. Colledge, C. Eller, H. C. 
Christian, A. G. M. MacNair, and H. DePledge. These 
young gentlemen are representative men in the colony, 
which includes members of families of high social 
standing in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. 
The colony numbers about six hundred at present, and 
comprises fine agricultural and stock farms, in the 
neighborhood of $3,000,000 capital having already 
been invested. The Lemars delegation was in charge 
of Mr. S. Nugent Townshend, correspondent of the 
London Field and President of the British Association 
of Kansas. Mr. Townshend was assisted by Mr. W. 
P. Denton-Cardew also of the British Association, who 
visited Raton a few weeks since. The party paid a 
visit to Santa Fe and passed east by Thursday's At- 
lantic express. All of the party have accepted an 
invitation to join a fishing expedition that will start 
out from Raton next summer on a three-weeks tour 
of Colfax county.^^* 

Considering the large number of handsome 
young Englishmen in northwestern Iowa, it is 
not surprising that weddings sometimes occurred. 
The distinction of contracting the first marriage 
within the colony belongs to Montague J. Chap- 
man and Aimee de Pledge: their honeymoon con- 
sisted of a trip to the Mardi Gras and a weary 
return through a real western snow blockade. The 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 233 

first colonist to select a wife, however, was no less 
than the founder of the colony, William B. Close. 
At New York City he married the lady of his 
choice, Mary Paullin, whose father, Daniel Paul- 
lin, had induced the Close brothers to invest in 
lands adjacent to Le Mars.^'^ 

William Edgecomb, who had secured a license 
to wed IMary Fowler upon arrival at New York 
and lost it, married the lady at his farm near 
Sergeant's Bluit*. (.harles Kay and Walter Abra- 
ham Paulton returned from England with brides ; 
and W. B. Young took a bride at Alva, Scotland. 
Other notable marriages within the settlement 
were those of Andrew Dowglass, John Campbell, 
Frederick Kingsbury Veal, James Brough War- 
ren, Randolph Payne, Alfred Robert Tighe Dent, 
and Hugh Lyon Playfair Chiene, the latter to 
Florence Emily Sugden. A most interesting and 
elaborate society event in the autumn of 1881 was 
the marriage of Fred Brooks Close to Margaret 
Humble, both English residents of Le Mars. A 
formal dance at Ai)ollo Hall preceded the wedding 
ceremony at Grace Church: attending this festal 
gathering w^ere the elite of the English colony, a 
few Le Mars and Sioux City citizens, and most 
distinguished of all, John Walters, member of 
Parliament and proprietor of the London Times, 
who happened to be in the city on his tour of the 



234 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

United States, accompanied by Ms daughter. The 
popular bride and groom banqueted their guests 
at the Albion House, were showered with expen- 
sive wedding gifts, and later departed for a seven 
months ' hone^ymoon in England, France, and other 
continental comitries.'^° 

But death came occasionally to interrupt the 
routine of workaday life and to mar the gaiety of 
social intercourse among the English colonists. 
When President Garfield died from the effects of 
an assassin 's bullet. Englishmen at Le Mars quick- 
ly responded in the hour of the nation's sorrow by 
holding impressive memorial services. With the 
Union Jack draped beneath the portrait of the 
martyr president. Rev. Cunningham and Captain 
Moreton addressed a meeting of their friends and 
many of them penned a letter of sympathy to the 
grief -stricken widow\'^^ 

Nor did the Grim Reaper fail to take toll among 
the colonists themselves during the early years — 
especially in the winter months. At Albion House 
died John S. Grundy, but lately arrived from Eng- 
land ; while pneumonia took the life of Hugh, aged 
twenty-three, eldest son of Sir Edward Hornby of 
Sussex. About the same time Ernest Taylor and 
Herbert Dalton, aged thirty-one, succumbed to 
diphtheria. News of the accidental death of Hugh 
Watson while hunting in Scotland spread deepest 



SOCIAL LIFE : THE PRAIRIE CLUB 235 

gloom among the many friends who were expect- 
ing to welcome him back to the ranch which he 
and his brother owned in the vicinity of the Big- 
Sioux River. 

If English settlers entertained any doubt about 
the uncertainty of life, the month of March, 1883, 
must have dispelled the last trace : the passing of 
Mrs. G. C Maclagan and of Walter, son of Gen- 
eral Lockhart of British India, due to consump- 
tion, occurred almost contemporaneously with the 
suicide of Basil Dempsey, a pleasant, good- 
natured, well-to-do young man who had just re- 
turned to his farm from a trip to Texas. Particu- 
larly shocking among the younger set was the end 
of Alexander W. Dunwaters, not yet aged twenty- 
one and once a farm pupil of Captain Moreton: 
he had left a wealthy mother in England to visit 
and to hunt with his friends in Iowa ; but after a 
short struggle with pneumonia he succumbed, and 
sorrowing countrymen laid him in the grave."^^ 

Sad, too, were the tidings when a friend or rela- 
tive passed aw^ay in the old home thousands of 
miles aw^ay. A telegram received at the Prairie 
Club told of the death of William E. Gladstone. 
Charles Dacres mourned the loss of his aged 
father. Admiral Sir Sydney Colpoys Dacres; and 
a brother grieved over the untimely end of Lord 
St. Vincent on the field of battle in the Soudan. 



236 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

If any member of the English colony in the 
early years had the fortune to become a peer of 
the British realm, a vigilant press at Le Mars 
failed to record the fact; and when in a burst of 
enthusiasm a newspaper announced that the Hon. 
Henry Frank Sugden of Arlington Township, 
Woodbury County ("Old Sug" as the colonists 
familiarly called him), had just succeeded to the 
barony of St. Leonard, by the death of his brother, 
Mrs. Sugden entered a prompt, if not vigorous, 
denial.""^ 



XXI 

ENGLISH CHURCH LIFE IN NORTH- 
WESTERN IOWA 

The fact that members of the English colony 
had severed their connections with the Anglican 
Church of the mother country did not mean a 
lapse of religious life in the wilds of northwestern 
Iowa. On the contrary, as early as April, 1880, 
the Rev. H. P. Marriott-Dodington of Trinity 
College (Cambridge), a clergyman of independent 
means with estates in Dorset, was ministering 
gratuitously to their needs in the parish of Grace 
Church at Le Mars. During his absence to look 
after his affairs in England, lay services were con- 
ducted in Apollo Hall by M. J. Chapman and 
Captain Moreton whom the Bishop of the Iowa 
Diocese had asked to be ordained. Early in March, 
1881, the rector returned to his parish and took a 
foremost part in promoting the building of a place 
of worship; but it was not long before he found 
it necessar}^ to journey back to England to be gone 
for at least one year. 

As lay reader, Captain Moreton again took 
charge until the arrival in August, 1881, of a new 

237 



238 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

rector, Rev. Herbert Noel Cunningham of Brase- 
nose College, a graduate of Oxford University and 
a man of fine ability and great scholarship. Or- 
dained in England by the Bishop of Oxford, he 
resigned his cure near Reading and came to Le 
Mars. He had visited Bishop Perry at Daven- 
port, Iowa, and had been made a presbyter of the 
Protestant Episcopal Church of America. His 
appointment was duly confirmed, and induction 
by the Bishop of Iowa followed soon after. Ser- 
vices according to the Anglican ritual thus became 
regular among the English settlers ; and, according 
to a newspaper report, to Le Mars belonged the 
"distinction of possessing the only church in the 
United States wherein prayers are offered for 
Queen Victoria as the head of a nation ".^^* 

The rector's first duty, it is said, was the burial 
at Portlandville (now Akron), fourteen miles 
away, of a countryman who had but recently 
crossed the ocean to make his home in low^a. There 
he also held services at stated intervals for the 
benefit of his English parishioners. On one such 
occasion his pulpit at Le Mars was ably filled by 
Canon Neville who had purchased a section of 
land in Sioux County and offered it for sale at 
eight dollars per acre in order that he might be 
nearer his friends in Plymouth County. It is in- 
teresting to note here that another distinguished 



ENGLISH CHURCH LIFE 239 

churchman had recently invested in thirteen hun- 
dred acres of Sioux County land — Rev. F. G. 
Howard, M. A., Fellow of Trinity College and 
Proctor of Cambridge University, which last title 
prompted the newspaper scribe at Le Mars to 
write: ''We dare say our good friend Mr. J. 
Wakefield will remember when, in his college days, 
he met Mr. Howard at a wine in Malcolm 
Street. ""^^ At another time Rev. Edgar Jacob, 
vicar of Portsea, officiated in Grace Church. 

In his travels about the country to meet the 
members of his widely scattered flock, the rector 
also conducted services at West Fork or Quorn 
(the home of William B. Close). Not content 
with his labors as a circuit-riding parson, he 
undertook to conduct a school or academy for the 
children of his parish and organized a singing 
class for their benefit, so great w^as his diligence 
and enthusiasm as a worker. As a token of his 
parishioners' appreciation, he received an elegant 
student's lamp at the time of his first Christmas 
party in the colony. He became, moreover, the 
president of a chess club of eighteen members who 
met frequently to enjoy their favorite indoor 
game. He also advertised that as late Colghitt 
Exhibitioner of Brasenose College and graduate 
in classical honors he would undertake the educa- 
tion of boys and make arrangements for boarding 



240 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

pupils: and so, shortly after New Year's, 1883, he 
opened a day school for boys and girls. A few 
weeks later he journeyed to Philadelphia to await 
the arrival of his fiancee from England and re- 
turned to Le Mars a benedict. In the summer 
occurred the consecration of Grace Church's new 
place of worship as St, George's Church, which 
had been erected at a cost of $6000.'"*' 

An event of some importance in the history of 
St. George's parish at this time was the coming 
of Major Nassau Somerville Stephens and his 
family, announcement of the fact at Le Mars be- 
ing conveyed by one of the newspapers in the 
following terms: 

Major Nassau Stephens, of the Royal Marine Light 
Infantry, arrived here last Thursday, and will act for 
the time being as Lay Reader in St. George's church 
at this place. The Major served in the British army 
tAventy-two years, but finally decided to take orders, 
for which he is now preparing. His ordination is ex- 
pected to take place in Lemars about Christmas. He 
is a frank, genial, earnest gentleman, deeply imbued 
with a spirit of devotion for the work to which he 
consecrates his life, the sentinel wishes him suc- 
cess, and his family much pleasure in their chosen 
home. 

After his ordination the major declared he 
would probably do mission work in the parish. He 
attended Nashotah Theological Seminary, was 



ENGLISH CHURCH LIFE 241 

recommended for deacon's orders in 1889, and in 
due time became a priest.^" 

Along with all the activities already suggested, 
Rev. Cunningham three times during his incum- 
bency prepared for the press St. George's edition 
of the monthly publication of the Episcopal 
Church in lowa."^^ To the sincere regret of the 
whole parish, which had found him earnest, effi- 
cient, and faithful in his work. Rev. Cunningham 
tendered his resignation to take effect on April 4, 
1884, and bore with him to a church in Gardner, 
Massachusetts, the best wishes of his numerous 
Le Mars friends. Services in St. George's Church 
were then conducted by the Revs. B. R. Kirkbride, 
G. W. Seppings, J. E. Higgins, and H. L. Brad- 
don. Not until November 27, 1884, did the Rev. 
A. Vaughan Colston fill the vacancy. He re- 
mained for about four years. 

For the benefit of the rectory the parishioners 
rendered Gilbert and Sullivan's ''Pirates of Pen- 
zance" in the playhouses at Sioux City and Le 
Mars ; and upon the death of General Grant they 
paid a solemn tribute to his memory and charac- 
ter. To celebrate Queen Victoria's jubilee in 1887 
Rev. Colston preached a jubilee sermon to Amer- 
icans and English in St. George's Church, draped 
with the flags of both countries. The rector closed 
with the words: "If, this morning, I have re- 



242 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

vived your patriotism, it is but to make you love 
your adopted country the better". After the ser- 
mon the congregation sang "God Save the 
Queen. "^^^ 

Not only did Captain Moreton serve as lay 
reader in the colony's Episcopal Church, as in- 
dicated above, but as one of its most active leaders 
in religious life he early exerted himself in the 
formation of a Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion, and he worked for a home in which the young 
men of the community might spend their evenings 
and leisure hours. Having obtained $1500 from 
friends in England, he sought an equal amount 
among the people who were to be the beneficiaries 
of his project. He secured the good wishes and 
support of many citizens who hoped that the asso- 
ciation would "not be placed on a narrow footing 
but made broad and liberal so that all may feel at 
home in it." That the Captain's plans carried is 
evident from the fact that he served as president 
of the society. 

Captain Reynolds Moreton was a broad church- 
man, and some said that on account of his natural 
enthusiasm and excess of zeal he was more of a 
preacher than a business man. It is interesting 
to add that he had assisted Moody and Sankey in 
London, had charge of the Presbyterian Church 
of Sioux City during the regular pastor's illness 



ENGLISH CHURCH LIFE 243 

for nine months, and later spent several weeks in 
revival meetings at Fort Dodge."^° 

Reports of the diocese of Iowa show a gradual 
decline in the condition of religious activities 
among the English settlers of northwestern Iowa. 
In 1887 St. George's Church at Le Mars consisted 
of sixty-three families of two hundred and seven 
persons of whom eighty-nine were communicants ; 
at Akron six families of twenty-one persons and 
at Calliope in Sioux County one family of eight 
persons were cared for by a missionary, Rev. 
Arthur Everard Marsh.^^^ Unorganized missions 
at Kingsley and Hawarden made no report, while 
those of Sibley and Spirit Lake ministered to 
eleven and twelve families of fifty-six and forty 
individuals, respectively. Organized missions had 
been established at Larchwood, Cherokee, Sheldon, 
and Spencer. From 1882 to 1890 Episcopalians 
of Sioux City were quite well looked after by the 
Rev. William Richmond, a Dublin University 
man.'^^ In 1890 the organized missions of Larch- 
wood, Spencer, and Spirit Lake were vacant and 
made no report, while Sheldon had only fourteen 
communicants. L^norganized missions at Akron 
and Kingsley existed in name only. At Sibley, 
where services had been regularly celebrated, it 
was reported that 'Hhe people of the congregation 
being English, the majority of them have returned 



244 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

to their native country to remain", leaving the 
church very small: all the towns mentioned, be- 
sides Cherokee and Estherville, reported only 
eighty-one Episcopalian (chiefly English) fami- 
lies, while St. George's Church at Le Mars alone 
claimed seventy-three families of two hundred and 
seven persons. In 1893 missions still existed at 
Sheldon, Sible}^ Spencer, Spirit Lake, Kingsley, 
Larchwood, and Rock Rapids, but they were in- 
significant. The mission at Estherville cared for 
only thirty families, and St. George 's congregation 
had dropped to fifty-four families of one hundred 
and seventy persons, comparatively few of whom 
were English.^^^ 



XXII 

DISAPPEARANCE OP THE BRITISH FROM 
NORTHWESTERN IOWA 

Of the Britishers who were induced to come to 
the counties of northwestern Iowa during the 
eighties not many can be found living there to- 
day. The farm life that promised wealth and 
happiness to the immigrants ended in disappoint- 
ment and even failure for most of the young mi- 
married men. Those who bought land and de- 
pended on hired help soon saw" their farms leav- 
ing them; while others left the country to live in 
town where pioneer conditions did not press so 
heavily upon them. 

At the beginning of the British invasion of the 
region it was freely prophesied that stock farming 
would bring especially big returns because of free 
pasturage on the prairies: cattle and sheep could 
range everywhere on excellent grazing land with- 
out let or hindrance. Stock farmers were, how- 
ever, warned that this condition was precarious 
since it was evident that within ten years there 
would not be much good free range country left 
east of the Missouri River. In the event of immi- 



245 



246 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

gration cutting off free pasture, stock men were 
told that they could either sell their farms at prob- 
ably four or five times the original cost, exclusive 
of improvements, and move to Dakota or Mon- 
tana, or else they could turn their attention to 
fattening stock on grain.^^* 

Some of the Britishers made money by the in- 
crease in the price of their lands ; but none of them 
went farther west to continue stock raising. A 
goodly number with characteristic bulldog tenacity 
stuck to their farms and made a reasonable profit 
on their industry, many of them in time becoming 
naturalized American citizens. Those who bought 
no lands quickly dissipated their money and with- 
in a short time wandered out of the State, some 
eventually going back to the mother country. 

Many of the inmiigrants after a period of resi- 
dence in the West suffered so intensely from home- 
sickness or other causes that they left for the old 
home never to return. R. Smyth and W. Grouse 
were 'thoroughly disgusted with the beautiful 
west and the 'Eden of Iowa', and vowed they 
would hereafter give America a wide berth." 
Captain J. D. Aubertin returned to Liverpool, and 
Will Young had ''had enough of the wild western 
land where the playful cyclone rages, and con- 
cluded to spend the remainder of his days in the 
highlands of Scotland." Arthur Gee and his 



DISAPPEARANCE OF THE BRITISH 247 

family, after giving Iowa two trials, also took per- 
manent leave. 

Mrs. A. F. Sugden and her brother returned 
home after selling their entire outfit — horses, 
cattle, implements, and imported English house- 
hold goods. When H. B. Southworth joined the 
exodus, an American friend suggested sending him 
a letter of condolence on Christmas morning and 
added: ''How crowded and tame that country 
must feel to a man who has roamed over our 
boundless prairie, and been touched by its wild 
untamable spirit ! ' ' 

Of the three hundred who joined the Prairie 
Club during its first decade only a few are left in 
Iowa to tell about those early days: they reside 
chiefly at Le Mars and Sioux City. In the former 
towTi are G. A. C. Clarke, Adair Gr. Colpoys, F. 
K. Veal, R. M. Latham, and the four Nicholson 
brothers. At Sioux City dwell A. Y. Weir, Henry 
H. Drake, T. H. Dealtry, Percy E. Prescott, E. 
A. Fullbrook, and George E. Ward who was a 
member of the State House of Representatives 
from 1908 to 1910; Francis P. Baker remains at 
Akron ; and H. C. Christian and Randolph Payne 
at Kingsley. Other members of the Close colony 
are Will Paulton of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; 
A. C. CoUedge and Henry Moreton, of Minnea- 
polis, Minnesota; Herbert Cope of Medicine Hat, 



248 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Alberta, Canada ; M. J. Chapman of Pullman and 
A. R. T. Dent of Seattle, Washington; Will Far- 
quhar of Joliet, Illinois; and Mowbray Farquhar 
of the Canadian Mounted Police. 

Many lie buried in various parts of the United 
States : Tom Dowglass at Cherokee, J. H. Preston 
at Sioux City, Jack Watson at Chicago, Percy 
Atkinson at Hawarden, and Fred Statter in Cali- 
fornia. F. E. Romanes died in Germany; Jack 
Wakefield in Australia; and eT. H. Grayson, Fred 
Paley, F. R. Price, A. Ronaldson, Con Benson, 
Harry Eller, and G. C. Maclagan went to their 
graves in the British Isles. 

A considerable number are reported as still 
living in the British Isles : W. Roylance Court, H. 
Rickards, Prank Cobden, A. W. Maitland, E. F. 
Robertson, G. Garnett, Albert Farquhar, H. Hill- 
yard, Walter A. Paulton, Cecil Benson, and one 
of the Margesson boys who married Lord Hobart'f? 
sister. The father of the colony, William Brooks 
Close, has lived in England in recent years. One 
became a tramp and another a stevedore, while a 
third, after several months of high living so long- 
as his credit was good, dropped out of sight, re- 
turned one day many years later and after paying 
his debts with interest disappeared as suddenly 
as he had come. Ronald Jervis has emerged as 
Earl St. Vincent; Lord Hobart is now the Earl 



DISAPPEARANCE OF THE BRITISH 249 

of Buckinghamshire; and Almeric Paget, who 
married a sister of Harry Payne Whitney of New 
York and served as a member of the House of 
Commons for Cambridge University until a few 
years ago, is now Lord Queenborough.^^^ 

But no matter where the members of the colony 
strayed — wherever and whenever a few gathered 
to recall and reminisce about the olden days, with 
light hearts they were always able to join in the 
colony song and its refrain: 

THE COLONY SONG 



The ship was outward bound 

And we drank a health around : 

'Twas the year of '81 or thereabout. 

We were bound for prairie farms 

Where like bees the dollars swarm 

And our hearts, tho' young and green, were pretty stout. 

I was two and twenty then and like many other men 

Among that tough community on board, 

I'd been raising Cain in town and my money being gone, 

How to raise another fiver I was floored. 

Chorus 

Here's a health to all the boys 

Who are out of this world's joys 

And have to earn their living by hard toil, 

But let us hope that ere they rust, 

They may pile up lots of dust 

And live again upon their native soil. 



250 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 



In our exams all plucked and out of England chucked, 

Out of patience were our friends and most unkind; 

And they told us pretty plain that ere they'd see us home 

again, 
Our fortunes o'er the seas we'd have to find. 
So we liquored up and laughed day and night aboard that 

craft 
Until we parted at New York and went ashore. 
And from then until this time 
We have never made a dime 
But hope there are better times in store. 



For if salt pork and green tea are choicest blessings we 

Are certainly above all measure blessed; 

But we've been so long in need 

That we're one and all agreed 

We can very well dispense with all the rest. 

But as each man tells his tale 

'Tis monotonous and stale : 

We found there was no money on a farm 

And ^very honest chum to the same low ebb has come, 

But being ''bust" don't do him any harm. 



How one in Iowa went ploughing all the day, 

One in Tennessee pioneered and died. 

One sold papers on the cars or cocktails at a bar 

Or in prairie stores forgot old country pride. 

And one unlucky swain thought he'd just go home again 

But was received with cold shoulders by his friends. 

One sucker dug a hole in the hopes of finding coal 

And one peddled soap and odds and ends. 



DISAPPEAKANCE OF THE BRITISH 251 



How one went pitching hay for fifty cents a day 

And one in a shanty kept a school; 

North and South and East and West we have done our 

level best 
But failed to make the dollars as a rule. 
And some they took to drink and some to slinging ink 
And shepherded or cattle drove awhile, 
But never that I know so far as stories go 
Did one of us e'er make his pile. 

6 

Well, 'tis better here than there: 

Since rags must be our wear 

On the prairie all are equal every man 

And we're all of us agreed 

That a gentleman in need 

Must earn his daily living as he can.^^® 

It is manifestly impossible to trace the course 
of life of all the several hundred Britishers who 
at one time or another sojourned in northwestern 
Iowa. Whether numbered among the living or 
the dead, they are scattered far and wide. The 
Close colonj^ which began with scores of Britishers 
in possession of prairie farms for miles in all 
directions from Le Mars proved to be short-lived : 
the lands which they owned gradually passed into 
the hands of other people, including many natives 
of the British Isles of a somewhat different type. 
It can hardly be maintained that they left much 



252 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

of a permanent impress on the community in 
which they lived — at least not in the same way 
as did their neighbors to the north, the Hollanders 
of Maurice and Orange City and Sioux Center and 
many other towns. The Dutch who began to settle 
there in 1869 and 1870 have never let go of their 
holdings; thousands of immigrants have joined 
them in the half century past ; and they and their 
descendants, probably thirty thousand strong in 
1922, have made the region famous for its excel- 
lence in agriculture.^''^ 

A survey of the population figures for the Iowa 
counties into which the Close brothers helped 
bring the hum of life shows that the British-born 
residents were at one time a considerable ele- 
ment.^*"^ That they and thousands of other British 
immigrants were wanted and expected to come in 
increasing numbers — of this fact future genera- 
tions of Americans will always be reminded when 
they glance at the map and see the names of 
British origin, many of w^hich were designed 
to attract emigration from abroad: Plymouth 
County and O 'Brien County, the villages of Quorn 
and Archer, and the towns of Sutherland, Gran- 
ville (once Grenville), Alton, Ireton, Hawarden, 
and across the river in South Dakota the towns 
of Alcester and Beresford.^^® 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 
PART I 

CHAPTER I 
^ Historical and Comparative Census of Iowa, 1836-1880, 

pp. XV, XVI. 

^ This book of 252 pages, with an interesting map, was 
entitled Sketches of Iowa, or the Emigrant's Guide. It was 
published by J. H. Colton, who during those years issued 
many such guides describing the West. 

^Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand Book," p. 
viii. 

* Extracts from the English press relating to his lectures 
can be found in Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand 
Book," p. iv. This guide to Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa 
contains 100 pages. 

^Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand Book," pp. 
V, vii-x. 

^Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand Book," pp. 
62, 63. 

''Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand Book," pp. 

74, 75. 

^Newhall's The British Emigrants' "Hand Book," pp. 

74-78. 

^ For a list of these books see Mann's The Emigrant's 
Complete Guide to the United States of America, pp. 71, 72. 



253 



254 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

^"Mann's The Emigrant's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, pp. iii, iv, v, 5, 6. 

^^ Mann's The Emigrant's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, p. iii. 

^^ Mann's The Emigrant's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, p. iv. 

^^ Mann 's The Emigrant 's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, pp. iv, v. 

^* Mann 's The Emigrant 's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, pp. 3, 7. 

^^ Mann's The Emigrant's Complete Guide to the United 
States of America, p. 38. 

^^ Mann's The Emigrant's Complete Guide to the United 
States of Aynerica, pp. 39, 68. 

^^ Wolfe's History of Clinton County, Iowa, Vol. I, pp. 

55-58, 281, 282. 

'^^ History of Clinton County, Iowa (Western Historical 
Company, 1879), pp. 636, 642; Wolfe's History of Clinton 
County, Iowa, Vol. I, p. 302. 

^^ Iowa State Register (Weekly, Des Moines), November 
16, 1870. 

CHAPTER II 

^° Newhall issued a third volume, A Glimpse of Iowa in 
1846; or, the Emigrant's Guide, a book of 106 pages. His 
favorite title page inscription was a statement of Coleridge: 
"The possible destiny of the United States of America, as a 
nation of a hundred millions of freemen, stretching from the 
Atlantic to the Pacific, living under the laws of Alfred, and 
speaking the language of Shakespeare and Milton, is an 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 255 

august conception. Why should we not wish to see it 
realized ? ' ' 

Colton's The Emigrant's Hand-Book (1848) contains some 
information on Iowa. On pages 116-123 appears an address 
of the Irish Emigrant Society of New York to the people 
of Ireland. 

2^ Historical and Comparative Census of Iowa, 1836-1880, 
pp. 168, 169. 

^^ Northern Iowa. By a Pioneer. Containing Valuable 
Information for Emigrants. (40 pages). 

^^ See Marcus L. Hansen 's article, Official Encouragement 
of Immigration to Iowa in The Iowa Journal of History and 
Politics, Vol. XIX, pp. 165-167. 

^*Iowa: The Home for Immigrants, being a Treatise on 
the Resources of Iowa, and Giving Useful Information with 
Regard to the State, for the Benefit of Immigrants and 
Others. 

2^ For these facts see Iowa Legislative Documents, 1872, 
Document No. 27, pp. 3-9. 

'^^ Iowa State Register (Weekly, Des Moines), July 13, 
1870. 

^^ Mr. Edginton's work is reported in the Iowa Legislative 
Documents, 1872, Document No. 27, pp. 22, 23. 

^* In the Christian World of London appeared an article 
by Christopher Crayon on Iowa as a Field for Emigration. 
This account is reprinted in the Iowa State Register (Weekly, 
Des Moines), February 1, 1871. 

^^ This arrangement between the State and certain rail- 
road companies is referred to in the Iowa Legislative Docu- 



256 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

merits, 1872, Document No. 27, p. 7, and the Iowa State 
Register (Weekly, Des Moines), May 25, 1870. 

^° Reported in the loiva State Register (Weekly, Des 
Moines), May 15, 1872. 

^^ Shambaugh 's Messages and Proclamations of the Gov- 
ernors of Iowa, Vol. V, p. 84. 

American consuls in England must have heard of the 
plans of the Close brothers of Manchester to establish a 
community of Britishers in northwestern Iowa. 

^^ The Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Vol. XIX, 
pp. 188-190. 

^^ The Manchester Guardian, quoted in the Iowa State 
Register (Weekly, Des Moines), February 11, 1881. 

^* Iowa Legislative Documents, 1886, Vol. V, Report of 
H. S. Fairall, Commissioner, p. 3. 

^^ See, for example, the Iowa Railroad Land Company's 
Choice of Iowa Farming Lands, 1870, and the Sioux City 
and St. Paul Railroad Company's Farms and Homes in the 
Near West Located in Northern Iowa and Southern Minne- 
sota. The land commissioner of the latter company seems 
to have had an office at 57 Charing Cross, London, S. W. 

CHAPTEE III 

^^ Historical and Comparative Census of Iowa, 1836-1880, 
pp. 168, 170; Census of Iowa, 1885, pp. 19, 24, 26, 45, 47, 
63, 65, 68. 

^^ Annual reports of the four Roman Catholic dioceses 
of Iowa can be found in The Official Catholic Directory. 

3» United States Census, 1880, pp. 494, 506-508. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 257 

8» Census of Iowa, 1885, pp. 164-166, 1895, pp. 305-307, 
1905, pp. 517-520, 1915, pp. 465-467. 

*° Census of Iowa, 1885, pp. 1-82, 1895, pp. 331-333. 

*^ United States Census, 1880, pp. 506-508 ; Census of 
Iowa, 1885, pp. 164-166. 

^2 Census of Iowa, 1895, pp. 331-333, 1915, pp. 462-464. 

*^ United States Census, 1880, pp. 506-508 ; Census of 
Iowa, 1885, pp. 164-166. 

In 1895 Appanoose County had 374 Scotch and in 1915, 
233, while Monroe and Woodbury counties had 232 and 205, 
respectively, in 1915. — Census of Iowa, 1915, pp. 465-467. 

" Census of loiva, 1885, pp. 1-82, 1895, pp. 330-333. 

*s United States Census, 1880, pp. 494, 506-508 (the figures 
include the Welsh) ; Census of Iowa, 1885, pp. 164-166, 1895, 
pp. 304-307, 1915, pp. 462-464. 

*® Census of Iowa, 1915, p. lv. The native-born Dutch, 
Russians, Bohemians, and Italians numbered 12,638, 9896, 
9500, and 6261, respectively. 

*^ The counties most frequently included in the census 
lists of different years were the ones with the most populous 
cities in Iowa: Dubuque, Scott, Polk, Pottawattamie, Linn, 
and Woodbury. Counties ranking next were Monroe, Clin- 
ton, Johnson, Wapello, Delaware, Black Hawk, Fayette, 
Greene, and Jasper. In several of these the Britishers were 
largely employed in coal mines. 

PART II 
CHAPTER I 

*^ Statement by William B. Close in a letter from London, 
November 30, 1921. 



258 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

*^ The middle name of the four brothers is that of their 
mother. John, who subsequently became John Brooks Close- 
Brooks on being made a partner in his uncle's bank in Man- 
chester, was born on June 9, 1850 ; James, on July 30, 1851 ; 
William, on May 6, 1853 ; and Frederick, on December 7, 
1854. Frederick B. Close began farming in Virginia in the 
year 1872. See Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, 
p. 2. 

^° In his letter of November 30, 1921, Mr. Close appends 
the following observation: 

**I go into these details because they all lead up to the 
reason why we settled in Western Iowa, and here we may 
pause to note how very little events turn the trend of one's 
life into a career that otherwise would not have been followed. 
For if a man at Birmingham had not made a faulty screw, 
and if the builder of our racing shell at Newcastle-on-Tyne 
had not happened to put this faulty screw into the bars 
supporting my slide, I should never have had the bruise; I 
should have gone out with the boys at Cape May on the 
training walk; I should never have met Mr. Daniel PauUin, 
who well advised me as to my business career; and I should 
never have married his daughter!" 

See also Poultney Bigelow's version of the story in 
Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXII, p. 764; and 
Mr. Close's reference to the advice of his fiancee's father in 
Land and Water (English periodical) for November, 1879. 

In a letter from London, February 14, 1922, Mr. William 
B. Close wrote the following about Mr. Paullin : 

**Mr. Daniel Paullin was not an Englishman by birth or 
descent. I believe he was descended from the De Paullins — 
Huguenots, who escaped from France. His ancestors on 
both sides had long been settled in England. He married a 
daughter of Jonathan Turner, one of the earliest settlers in 
Illinois and the first to adopt the present system of schools 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 259 

now found throughout the West. Books have been written 
about him." 

^^ Letter of Wm. B. Close, November 30, 1921; Close's 
Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 16. 

^^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 17. 

^^ Land and Water, November, 1879, quoted in Close's 
Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 15. 

CHAPTER II 

^* Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 12, con- 
tains a picture and floor plan of one of these pioneer houses. 

^^ Close 's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 6. 

°^ William Dalrymple, who with a brother afterwards 
operated this farm, writes from Minneapolis that his father 
in 1875 purchased for himself and partners about 40,000 
acres in Cass and Trail counties. North Dakota. Of this 
Red River Valley land they farmed as much as 30,000 acres. 

^^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 16. 

^^ Macmillan's Magazine (London), Vol. XLIV, p. 68. 

^^ Close 's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 16, 17. 

CHAPTER III 

^°St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 31, 1881, quoted in The 
Lemars Sentinel, August 4, 1881. 

^^ The Lemars Sentinel, December 12, 1878. 

«2 Letter of Wm. B. Close, November 30, 1921. 

®^ John Brooks Close was reported as visiting his brothers 
at Le Mars in the spring of 1881. He accompanied Mr. 



6172 


14,996 


2199 


8566 


1967 


8240 


715 


4155 


576 


5426 




2219 


221 


1968 



260 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Sykes of Manchester who had come to look at his lands in 
Lyon County. — The Lemars Sentinel, May 5, 1881. 

^* Macmillan's Magazine (London), Vol. XLIV, pp. 65, 66. 

^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), July 9, 16, 1879. 

CHAPTER IV 

66 Figures on the settlement of northwestern Iowa counties 
taken from the United States Census, 1880, pp. 59, 60 : 
County 1850 1860 1870 1880 

Woodbury County 1119 

Plymouth County 148 

Cherokee County 58 

O'Brien County 8 

Sioux County 10 

Osceola County 

Lyon County 

In 1880 Sioux City had grown from 1030 (in 1867) to 
7366; Le Mars, from 152 (in 1870) to 1895; and Cherokee 
from 438 (in 1870) to 1523. — Iowa Historical and Com- 
parative Census, 1836-1880, pp. 453, 560, 606. 

^■^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 14. 

^^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 14. See 
also Report of the Land Commissioner of the Iowa Railroad 
Land Company, 1874, p. 4. 

^° Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, pp. 65, 66. Mr. 
Close also refers to the economic condition of England in 
1879 in his letter of November 30, 1921. 

''° Many of these letters were afterwards collected and 
republished in Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 
15-24. 

^^ This article in The London Times appeared in The 
Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), December 3, 1879. 



NOTES AND KEFERENCES 261 

CHAPTER V 

^2 The Lemars Sentinel, April 14, 1881. 

"T/ie Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), December 3, 1879. 

^* Close's Farming in NortJuWestern Iowa, p. 28. 

''^ Close 's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 2. 

^® Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 1. 

'^ The Lemars Sentinel, September 29, 1881, quoting an 
article on ''Iowa's Millionnaires" in The Dubuque Telegraph. 

^* Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 2, 27. 

''^Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 28. 

*° Close's Farming in N orth-W estern Iowa, pp. 2, 3. 

"Close's Farming in N orth-W estern Iowa, p. 4. 

*^ Close's Farming in North-W estern Iowa, p. 28. 

CHAPTER VI 

®^ Close's Farming in North-W estern, Iowa, pp. 4, 7-9, 
10, 13. 

^* Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 66. 

*^ Close's Farming in North-W estern Iowa, p. 8. 

^® Close's Farming in North-W estern Iowa, pp. 10, 11, 13. 

*^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 6, 7. 

^^Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 63. 

^^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 14. 

The Women's Emigration Society was founded in 1880 
to give information and loans for the emigration of capable, 
educated women to the colonies. This society seems also to 



262 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

have had a branch in Iowa. — Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. 
XLV, p. 315. 

^^ Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 29-31. 

CHAPTER VII 

^^On pages 31 and 32 of Close's Farming in North- 
western Iowa are given the following names of gentlemen 
in northwestern Iowa who could be communicated with in 
regard to the country by addressing them at Le Mars, Ply- 
mouth Co., Iowa: 

W. Hyndman Wann, Esq., of Belfast, Ireland 

H. W. Thompson, Esq., of Belfast, Ireland 

E. G. Maxtone Graham, Esq., of Battleby, Bed Gorton, Perth- 
shire, N. B. 

W. RoYLANCE Court, Jun., Esq., of Newton Manor, Middlewich, 

Cheshire 
W. H. Statter, Esq., of Whitefield, Manchester 
Gerald Gaenett, Esq., of Wyreside, Lancaster 
H. RiCKARDS, Esq., Carleton Lodge, Whalley Range, Manchester 
David B. M'Laren, Esq., Manchester 
H. Grey de Pledge, Esq., Gloucester 
Harry Eller, Esq., Manchester 
J. Eller, Esq., Manchester 

Alfred Shaw, Esq., of Arrowe Park, Birkenhead 
Philip Nahin, Esq., of Lime House, Wetheral, Carlisle 
J. H. Grayson, Esq., of Oakfield, Prince's Road, Liverpool 
Edward T. Wright, Esq., Rochester 

F. Horsburgh, Esq., Edinburgh 

Percy Heitland, Esq., The Priory, Shrewsbury 

George Smith, Esq., Wjonondham, Norfolk 

H. Carter, Esq., Yorkshire 

W. Sharp, Esq., Whalley Range, Manchester 

Cecil F. Benson, Esq., Langtons, Alresford, Hants 

W. White Marsh, Esq., of Wethersfield, Braintree, Essex 

John WAKEFiEiiO, Esq., Sedgewick, Kendal 

W. Gaskell, Esq., Kiddington Hall, Woodstock, Oxon 

Percy E. Prescott, Esq., The Abbey, Carlisle 

B. Dempsey, Esq., St. George's Mount, New Brighton 

A. E. Marsh, Esq., Tuxford, Newark 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 263 

James H. Smyth, Esq., Claremont, The Park, Birkenhead 
W. S. Smyth, Esq., Claremont, The Park, Birkenhead 
Hugh C. P. Chiene, Esq., Eastburn, Helensburgh 
Harry Hillyard, Esq., Abbey Square, Chester 
Armigel W. W^vde, Esq., Dunmow, Essex 

^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), November 5, 1879. 

^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), November 19, 1879. 

^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), December 3, 1879, Jan- 
uary 21, March 24, and April 28, 1880. 

^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), February 18, 1880. 

^^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Iowa Liberal 
(Le Mars), March 31, 1880, February 2, 1881. 

"^ The Rural New Yorker, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
July 14, 1881. 

^^ The two firms at this time were Close Brothers and 
Company and the Iowa Land Company, of which the Closes 
were managers. This distinction is not always easy to follow 
in the newspapers of those years. 

^^ The Lemars Sentinel, February 2, 1882. 

CHAPTER VIII 

"« The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), March 17, April 14, 1880. 

^"^ Close Brothers and Company still have an office in 
Chicago, although the original members have no more con- 
nection with it. 

^^" The Dubuque Telegraph article is given in full in The 
Lemars Sentinel, September 29, 1881. 

"^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 31, 1881, quoted in 
The Lemars Sentinel, August 4, 1881. 



264 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

^°* History of Woodbury and Plymouth Counties, pp. 435, 
500, 509. 

^°^ The Chicago Inter-Ocean, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, January 20, 27, March 3, 1881. 

^^^ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 68. Mr. Close's 
statement on the rise in the value of their lands early in 
1881 was as follows: 
Land that we bought in 

Virgin Land 

1877 in Crawford County for $2.75 to $3.25 

1878 in Woodbury and Plymouth $2.25 to $3.50 

1879 in " " " $3 to $4 

1880 in Plymouth and Sioux $4 to $6 
is now worth 

Virgin Land Improved Land 
$10 to $15 $15 to $25 

$ 7 to $10 $15 to $20 

$ 6 to $10 $12 to $15 

$ 6 to $10 $12 to $15 

^°^ The Lemars Sentinel, May 5, 1881. According to J. W. 
Probert of the present firm of Close Brothers and Company, 
the Closes never served as agents for railroad companies, but 
simply bought all the unsold land of the Sioux City and 
St. Paul in Iowa, English capital being plentiful enough to 
enable them to make the deal. This seems to square with 
the report of their contract with the land department of 
that railway in the summer of 1880. 

^°* The Lemars Sentinel, February 24, 1881. A letter by 
Mr. Benson to the Manchester Courier, January 20, 1881, 
appears in The Lemars Sentinel, March 3, 1881. 

"^ The Lemars Sentinel, May 5, 12, 26, 1881. 

"° Cedar Falls Gazette, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
June 9, 1881. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 265 

^" The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), June 1, 1881; The Leviars 
Sentinel, May 26, June 2, 1881. 

"2 A famous correspondent of The London Times, "Bull 
Run" Russell, accompanied the duke's party and afterwards 
published a book of his travels in the United States and 
Canada in 1881. Quoting from his account of the visit to 
northwestern Iowa, the Davenport Gazette declared: 

"The figures shown by Messrs. Close show good results; 
they are quite willing to welcome any gentleman desirous to 
try his fortune out West as a tenant, on conditions which 
they will communicate — the general principle being that 
the tenant and land owner should be in partnership, the re- 
turns of the occupant's farming to be divided in certain pro- 
portions between him and the owners, until the former be- 
comes absolute proprietor of the place. They heard of per- 
sons coming from districts in Ireland, Scotland or England, 
who had associated together for mutual help and support." 
— The Lemars Sentinel, March 30, 1882. 

"^ The Lemars Sentinel, August 4, 1881. 

"* The Lemars Sentinel, June 2, 1881. The Duke's money, 
no doubt, was all in the Iowa Land Company, 

It is interesting to note that Sutherland in 'Brien County 
was named after the Duke who, about the time the town site 
was located, was a guest of the officials of the railroad com- 
pany. They were sufficiently in love with His Royal High- 
ness to name their town site after him. — Perkins's History 
of O'Brien County, Iowa, p. 367. 

"^ The titles to land in this region were for a long time 
the subject of litigation in the courts. According to Mr. J. 
W. Probert of Chicago, the Iowa Land Company bought all 
the land finally awarded to the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. 
Paul in O'Brien County. See also Perkins's History of 
O'Brien County, Iowa, p. 259. 



266 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

^^^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Lemars Seii- 
tinel, August 4, 1881. 

^" The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, June 2, 1881. 

"« The Lemars Sentinel, July 28, 1881. 

"» The Lemars Sentinel, July 14, 1881. 

^2° The Sibley Gazette, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
July 28, 1881. 

^^^ The Dubuque Telegraph, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, September 29, 1881, The Closes were said to have 
500,000 acres for sale. 

^22 The Sioux City Journal, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
March 9, 1882. 

^23 The Worthington Advance, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, August 11, 1881. 

^2* The Fargo and Moorehead Daily Argus, August 25, 
1881, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, September 1, 1881. 

"^ The Worthington Advance, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, December 29, 1881. 

126 The Lemars Sentinel, May 31, 1883. 

12^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, April 13, 1882. 

CHAPTER IX 

^2« The Lemars Sentinel, July 13, 1882. For an account 
of this prohibitory amendment see Clark's The History of 
Liquor Legislation in Iowa in The Iowa Journal of History 
and Politics, Vol. VI, pp. 508-533. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 267 

129 The Lemars Sentinel, August 3, 1882. 

"° Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 2. 

CHAPTER X 

"1 The case of Koehler and Lange v. Hill, 60 Iowa 543-704. 

1=^2 TJie Le Mars Daily Liberal, August 24, 1882. 

133 The Minneapolis Tribune, quoted in The Evening Sen- 
tinel (Le Mars), March 8, 1883. 

"^r/ie Evening Sentinel (Le Mars), June 29, 1883. 

135 The Pipestone Star, quoted in The Evening Sentinel 
(Le Mars), July 12, August 16, 1883. 

^^^The Evening Sentinel (Le Mars), October 31, 1883, 
February 19, 1884. 

i^'^ These facts were obtained from Mr. J. W. Probert, the 
present manager of Close Brothers and Company with offices 
in the Conway Building at Chicago, farm loans being its 
chief business, 

138 The Le Mars Daily Sentinel, February 3, 1885. 
Samuel Houghton Graves, another Cambridge University 

man, joined the firm at Chicago in 1885. 

139 The Le Mars Daily Sentinel for February 3 and March 
17, 1885, shows that the Closes were still doing business in 
Iowa. 

""Peek, Montzheimer, and Miller's Past and Present of 
O'Brien and Osceola Counties, Iowa, p. 673. 

1*1 Peck, Montzheimer, and Miller's Past and Present of 
O'Brien and Osceola Counties, Iowa, p. 674. 
Mr. J. W. Probert of Chicago declares that he knew hun- 



268 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

dreds of the Iowa Land Company's tenants and regarded 
them as a fine class of Iowa and Illinois farmers. 

^*^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Le Mars 
Daily Sentinel, May 14, 1884. 

The aliens named here, except Mr. Sykes who had land in 
Lyon County, must have owned Minnesota land. The owners 
last referred to may include the Englishmen who had farms 
in northwestern Iowa. In any event, all these lands were 
probably being offered for sale by the Close brothers. 

"^ Congressional Record, 48th Congress, 1st Session, pp. 

2359, 4794. Members of Congress were given no authority 
for the following list: 

PuRCHASEK Amount 

English syndicate No. 1 (in Texas) 4,500,000 

English syndicate No. 3 (in Texas) 3,000,000 

Sir Edward Reid, K. C. B. (in Florida) 2,000,000 

English syndicate, headed by S. Philpotts 1,800,000 

C. R. and Land Company, of London Marquis of Tweedale 1,750,000 

Phillips, Marshall & Co., of London 1,300,000 

German syndicate . 1,100,000 

Anglo-American syndicate, headed by Mr. Rodgers, London 750,000 

An English company (in Mississippi) 700,000 

Duke of Sutherland 425,000 

British Land and Mortgage Company 320,000 

Captain Whalley, M. P., for Peterboro, England . . . 310,000 

Missouri Land Company, Edinburgh, Scotland 300,000 

Hon. Robert Tennant, of London 230,000 

Scotch Land Company, Dundee, Scotland 247,666 

Lord Dunmore 100,000 

Benjamin Newgas, Liverpool, England 100,000 

Lord Houghton 60,000 

Lord Dunraven 60,000 

English Land Company (in Florida) 50,000 

English Land Company, represented by B. Newgas . . 50,000 

An English capitalist (in Arkansas) 50,000 

Albert Peel, M. P., Leicestershire, England 10,000 

Sir John Lester Kaye, Yorkshire, England 5,000 

George Grant, of London (in Kansas) 100,000 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 269 

An English s^Tidicate (represented by Close Bros.) in Wis- 
consin [probably Iowa and Minnesota] 110,000 

A Scotch company (in California) 140,000 

M. Ellerhauser (of Nova Scotia) in West Virginia . . . 600,000 

A Scotch syndicate (in Florida) 500,000 

A. Boyesen, Danish consul at Milwaukee 50,000 

Missouri Land and S. S. Co., of Edinburgh, Scotland . . 165,000 

English syndicate (in Florida) 59,000 

Total acres 20,941,666 

CHAPTER XI 

^** This is no empty boast. The United States census for 
1920 reveals the fact that Iowa leads the nation as a farm- 
ing State, other States taking second place in the following 
respects : 

Iowa $8,524,870,956 



Value of land alone 



Value of all farm property j jy.^^.^ 6,666,767,235 

Iowa 6,679,020,577 

Illinois 5,250,294,752 

, .„. . Iowa 922,751,713 

Value of farm buildings j qj^^ 646,322,950 

, Iowa 309,172,398 

Value of farm machinery j j^^^.^ 222,619,605 



Value of live stock 



Iowa 613,926,268 

Texas 592,926,006 

With regard to the value of all farm property Sioux 
County came first in 1920, Pottawattamie second, and Ply- 
mouth third ; Sioux leads also in the value of land and farm 
buildings, Pottawattamie being second, Plymouth third, and 
Woodbury fourth. 

Pottawattamie led in the value of live stock, Plymouth 
came second, and Sioux third. In regard to the value of all 
crops produced in 1919, Sioux stood first, Pottawattamie 
second, and Plymouth third. 

These counties are, of course, among the largest in the 
State. Furthermore, by using monetary forms of measure- 
ment, especially in 1920 when all values were inflated, it is 
no wonder that we find these counties in Iowa enormously 



270 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

wealthy. Perhaps inflation had gone farther there than else- 
where, but even so no land in Iowa is more fertile than that 
of the northwestern counties. 

^*^ History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, 
Iowa (A. Warner & Co., 1890-1891), pp. 507, 508; The Iowa 
Liberal (Le Mars), February 2, 1881. 

^^^ The Monmouth Inquirer (New Jersey), quoted in The 
Lemars Sentinel, February 3, 1881. 

"^TTie loiva Liberal (Le Mars), February 2, 9, 1881; The 
Lemars Sentinel, May 5, 12, June 9, July 14, 1881; The 
Sibley Tribune, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, January 12, 

1882. 

^*^ The Bock Rapids Reporter, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, January 12, 1882. 

"« The Lemars Sentinel, July 14, 1881. 

^^° The Lemars Sentinel, February 2, 1882. 

^^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), February 9, 1881; The 
Lemars Sentinel, May 5, 1881. 

^^- The Sibley Gazette and The Sioux County Herald, 
quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, April 21, May 12, 1881. 

^^^The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), February 9, 1881; The 
Lemars Sentinel, February 10, April 21, June 9, August 11, 

1881. 

1^* Laws of Iowa, 1868, pp. 126-128. 

'^^^^ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 68; The Lemars 
Sentinel, June 16, 1881. 

^^® The Lemars Sentinel, February 2, 1882. 

^" The Lemars Sentinel, February 24, 1881, February 2, 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 271 

1882. These farms were advertised for rent in The Lemars 
Sentinel, July 21, August 4, 1881. 

^^® The Lemars Sentinel, February 24, 1881. 
Of the life led by tenants on these pioneer farms the pres- 
ent writer has no recollection but from a conversation with 
his parents, after this article was written, he discovered that 
he had spent most of his first year on a Close farm in 
Osceola County, one and a half miles south of Bigelow, 
Minnesota, and eight miles north of Sibley. There, on the 
treeless prairie, shortly after their arrival from Holland in 
the spring of 1884, the writer's parents took up their abode. 
Then, having harvested a crop of flax, they decided to 
abandon farming. Owing to a shortage of houses in Sibley, 
they had no choice but to spend the autumn and winter 
months in another of those cheerless tenant houses. Before 
removing to town on March 1, 1885, they sold their horses 
and farm machinery to the writer's uncle and aunt who 
were also recent immigrants from Holland. 

A news item in The Lemars Sentinel of June 16, 1881, 
hinted at the promotion of Dutch immigration to north- 
western Iowa in the following terms: 

"Some five or six weeks ago two Hollanders, brothers, 
named Harry and Mello Dykema came to Lemars. Harry 
had been a business man in Holland, and Mello had served 
four and a half years on the Parisian journals. Both are 
brilliant, talented and energetic. Lemars did not seem a 
promising field for a foreign journalist and the whilom man- 
ager of a great mercantile House, but they were bound to 
make a career of some sort. Soon the real estate firm of 
Richardson & Hospers saw in these dashing young men, the 
ablest of immigration commissioners, and last week Harry 
was sent back to Holland to direct the tide of homeseekers 
towards Plymouth and Sioux counties. He will doubtless 
give a good account of himself, and in two or three months 
we expect to see several hundred sturdy and well-to-do 



272 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Holland farmers, with their families, added to our population. 

"In the meantime, Mello, the ex- journalist, is writing 
letters to the leading papers in Holland, calling the attention 
of intending emigrants to the advantages of northwestern 
Iowa. . . . We congratulate Richardson & Hospers in having 
secured the services of such gifted and active young men, 
and hope they may prosper in their new home." 

Henry Hospers in 1869 began to promote the immigration 
of Hollanders to his "colony" in Sioux County not many 
miles north of Le Mars. Himself a native of The Nether- 
lands and for many years a prominent figure at Pella in 
Marion County where thousands of fellow-countrymen had 
found homes since 1847, Mr, Hospers induced a large number 
of his energetic young neighbors to leave that rapidly filling 
portion of the State and go with him to found the towns of 
East Orange (now Alton) and Orange City in northwestern 
Iowa. Those pioneer farmers of Dutch birth and ancestry 
blazed the way and thousands of emigrants fresh from 
Holland afterwards joined their settlement, Le Mars being 
the nearest railroad town and trade center for many years. 
For further information on the subject the reader is re- 
ferred to Van der Zee's The Hollanders of Iowa. 

^^^ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 68. 

^^"The Leniars Sentinel, May 5, 12, 1881, September 27, 

1883. 

CHAPTER XII 

^®^ The St. Paul Pioneer Press, quoted in The Lemars Sen- 
tinel, April 28, 1881. 

^^^ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 68; Anamosa 
Journal, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), June 1, 1881. 

"3 The Lemars Sentinel, February 24, July 28, October 6, 
1881; Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 68. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 273 

^^* The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), May 26, 1880; The Leymrs 
Sentinel, February 24, May 19, December 22, 1881. 

^^^ Close 's Farming in North-Western Iowa, pp. 22-24. See 
also an article in Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 
LXII, p. 767. 

^•'^ The Lemars Sentinel, January 20, 27, March 10, July 
14, 1881; Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 67. 

^^~ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 69, 

^^" Tlte Lemars Sentinel, July 14, 1881; Harper's New 
Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXII, p. 766, 

"« The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars) , December 8, 1880. 

^^" For brief sketches of these two men, see History of the 
Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, Iowa (A. ^Yarner & 
Co., 1890-1891), pp. 527, 747, 784. 

On the coming of Scotchmen see The Lemars Sentinel, 
April 14, June 9, 1881; The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), June 

23, 1880. 

^^^ For all these facts see The Lemars Sentinel, February 

24, April 7, May 12, August 25, September 15, 1881, March 
2, 1882 ; History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, 
Iowa (A. Warner & Co., 1890-1891), p. 750. 

^^2 The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), June 8, 1881; The Lemars 
Sentinel, June 2, 1881, October 13, 1885. 

^^^ The Lemars Sentinel, September 29, 1881, October 18, 
1883. 

"* The Lemars Sentinel, July 14, 1881, May 31, 1883. 

^^^ Mr, Bigelow's statement was unwarranted at the time 
he wrote. There were two Exeter College, Oxford, men: 
Henry H. Drake and Percy Atkinson, and F. R. Price, an 
Oxford blue from Queen's College. James and William 



274 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

Close, Con Benson, and Jack Wakefield were the only Cam- 
bridge men. 

^^" See Poultney Bigelow's story in Harper's New Monthly 
Magazine, Vol. LXII, p. 764. 

CHAPTER XIII 

^^^ The Leinars Sentinel, August 4, 1881. 

^''^ Close 's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 28. 

^^^ The London Times, quoted in. The Lemars Sentinel, 
December 15, 1881. 

^^° For a good general account of farm pupils, see Mac- 
millan's Magazine, Vol. LXII, pp. 193, 194. 

^^'^ The Lemars Sentinel, February 24, 1881; Macmillan's 
Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 67. 

^^2 Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, pp. 3, 4. 

It is said that the name "pups" given to the farm pupils 
originated in the fact that Captain Moreton had from the 
beginning gone into the raising of thoroughbred dogs on his 
farm. 

^®^ The Earl of Ducie died in England in 1921 at the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-four. 

^®* The number was probably exaggerated. 

^^^ Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, pp. 3, 4. 

^^^ Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, p. 5. 

^^^ Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, p. 5 

^^^ Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, pp. 6, 7. 

^^^ Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, pp. 7, 8. 

^^° Mellersh 's The English Colony in Iowa, p. 6. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 275 

^^^ For these criticisms of the farm pupil system see Mac- 
millan's Magazine, Vol, LXII, p. 196. 

182 Carroll Herald, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, August 
3, 1882. 

^^^The LeMars Semi-Weekly Sentinel, March 17, 1885. 
See also Will H. Kernan's account for the American Press 
Association in the issue of January 11, 1887. 

CHAPTER XIV 

^^* See Thomas Hughes's article in Macmillan's Magazine, 
Vol. XLIII, pp. 310-315. 

"^ The Lemars Sentinel, February 17, 1881. 

In the Brooklyn Eagle, April 16, 1881, appeared the fol- 
lowing news item: 

* ' A veteran emigrant in the person of Mrs. Hughes, mother 
of Thomas Hughes, is on her way to her son's colony at 
Rugby, East Tennessee. She proposes to vindicate her faith 
in his success by becoming a member of it. At the age of 
83 and over, she starts out to make a home in a new country 
and among strangers, and her motive is not necessity, but 
affection. She believes in her son, and having devoted so 
much of her life to him she crowns it with a last act that 
is all the more beautiful because it is performed at such a 
cost. To the old, home ties and local attachments are in- 
tensely strong, and this lady cannot be unlike her kind in 
this respect. She comes to live alone, away from her son, 
in order that what he is trying to do will not fail if her 
presence will prevent it. It is pleasant to know that she 
has been offered a special car to take her by easy stages to 
her new home, and that every attention is to be paid her 
on her arrival." 

Mr. Adair Colpoys, who first became interested in the 
Le Mars Colony through the Close pamphlet which was sent 



276 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

to him in Australia, also visited the Rugby Colony. The 
present writer called upon him at Le Mars in the summer 
of 1921 and learned that the site of the Tennessee Colony 
was poor timber land, stony and partially cleared, with titles 
in bad condition. 

^^® The Lemars Sentinel kept Englishmen at Le Mars in 
touch with the Tennessee experiment. See issues for August 
25, September 1, 1881, February 9, December 28, 1882, March 
8, 27, 1883. 

^^^ See the article in Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. LXII, p. 
193. 

CHAPTER XV 

^^^ The writer forgot to mention high-backed tin baths 
which also found a place in many an Englishman's "lug- 
gage". 

1^^ The Lemars Sentinel, April 7, 1881, April 11, 1884. 

200 The Lemars Sentinel, November 7, 1883. 

2"^ Venison Bulletin, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), 
January 5, 1881. 

^°' Dubuque Herald, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), 
August 10, 1881. 

^^^ Fonda Gazette, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), 
August 3, 1881. 

204 Dubuque Telegraph, May 21, 1881. 

205 St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 31, 1881. 

'^°^ Neiv York Review, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le 
Mars), January 5, 1881. 

^o'^ The Chicago Tribune, December 12, 1881. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 277 

^'^^ Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXII, pp. 764- 
768. 

2°^ Close's Farming in North-West&rn Iowa, pp. 1-32, with 
a map of Iowa. 

-'^° Maanillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, pp. 65, 67. 

Benson's article was recommended to English squires by 
The Lemurs Sentinel, June 16, 1881. Robert Benson, a 
brother of Constantine W. Benson who was a partner of the 
Close brothers, is to-day the head of Robert Benson and 
Company, financiers in the city of London. He and Mr. 
Stiekney of St. Paul financed the Chicago and Great Western 
Railway system. 

^'^^ Manchester Courier, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
March 3, 1881. 

212 Toronto Glohe, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, June 
16, 1881. 

'^^^ Manchester Courier, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, 
January 27, 1881. 

2" London Times, quoted in The Lemars Sentinel, Decem- 
ber 15, 1881. 

215 Punch, November 12, 1881. 

CHAPTER XVI 

21^ It is hardly necessary to substantiate the statements 
made in the next few pages of the text : information on the 
various activities in which Englishmen engaged was obtained 
from Le Mars newspapers covering the years 1880-1887, as 
well as from individuals. 

"^ The writer visited Le Mars during the summer of 1921 
and became indebted to Mr. Colpoys and Mr. Ed Dalton for 
many statements in this article. Acknowledgments are also 



278 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

due to Mr. Henry H. Drake of Sioux City with, whom the 
writer spent a very pleasant afternoon talking about the 
early days. Mr. Drake is an Exeter College, Oxford Univer- 
sity, man. 

CHAPTER XVII 

2^^ History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, 
Iowa (A. Warner & Co., 1890-1891), pp. 423, 429. 

2" The Lemars Sentinel, May 25, 1882. 

22or/te Lemars Sentinel, August 31, 1882; The LeMars 
Daily Liberal, August 22, 23, 1882. 

"1 The Lemars Sentinel, March 1, 1883. 

222 The Lemars Sentinel, October 12, 1882. 

"3 The Lemars Sentinel, October 19, 1882. 

22* The Lemars Sentinel, March 1, 1883. This newspaper 
published a supplement, April 5, on the coal discovery for 
the purpose of attracting settlers. 

225 The Lemars Sentinel, December 7, 28, 1882, January 
18, 1883. 

226 The Lemars Sentinel, January 25, March 1, 1883. 

227 The Lemars Sentinel, March 15, 22, June 28, 1883. 

228 The Lemars Sentinel, June 30, July 5, 12, 1883, Jan- 
uary 15, 18, 22, 1884. 

'*2» The Lemars Sentinel, February 29, March 9, September 
2, 12, 17, October 10, 1884. 

Captain Moreton seems to have gone to Illinois and later 
to Canada. His death was recently reported. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 279 

CHAPTER XVIII 

"T/ie Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), January 21, 1880. 

"ly^ie loiva Liberal (Le Mars), February 4, 1880. 

232 The Lemars Sentinel, March 31, April 28, May 5, 1881. 

223 The Lemars Sentinel, December 7, 1882. 

23* The Lemars Sentinel, March 29, April 5, 1883, Decem- 
ber 25, 1885. 

^^^ Macmillan's Magazine, Vol. XLIV, p. 67. 

23« The Lemars Sentinel, June 16, July 7, 1881. 

237 The Lemars Sentinel, July 21, 28, 1881. 

238 The Lemars Sentinel, August 11, 1881. 

239 The Lemars Sentinel, August 9, 1883. 

2*° The Lemars Sentinel, August 8, 1884, June 7, 1887. 

2*1 The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), May 19, 1880, August 25, 
1882; The Lemars Sentinel, May 5, June 2, 1881, May 25, 
1882. 

2*2T/ie Lemars Sentinel, June 16, 23, 1881; The Iowa 
Liberal (Le Mars), July 6, 1881. 

^^^ The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), July 6, 1881; The Lemars 
Sentinel, July 7, 1881. 

^^* Sioux City Journal, July 1, 1881. 

2*^ The Lemars Sentinel, July 14, September 29, October 
13, 1881 ; The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars) , July 6, 1881. 

2*^ The LeMars Daily Liberal, August 19, September 9, 13, 
1882 ; The Lemars Sentinel, June 15, October 12, 1882, May 
31, October 11, 1883, June 6, 12, August 25, October 7, 1884, 
June 9, October 2, 1885. 



280 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

-''' The loiva Liberal (Le Mars), August 11, 1882; The 
Lemars Sentinel, September 29, 1881, October 12, 1882. 

2*« The Lemars Sentinel, March 29, 1883. 

2*^ The Lemars Sentinel, January 15, 22, February 1, 1884, 
January 9, 1885. 

-^"^The LeMars Daily Liberal, August 7, 25, 1882; The 
Lemars Se^iiinel, July 12, 1887. Of this club, G. C. Mac- 
lagan was president, C. N, Richards vice president, J. U. 
Sanunis secretary, and F. E. Romanes and Tom Aldersey 
executive committee. 

-^^ The Lemars Sentinel, August 1, October 10, 1884. 

2" Many of these facts were obtained from Mr. Ed Dalton 
of Le Mars and Mr. Henry H. Drake of Sioux City. See 
also Freeman's History of Plymouth County, Iowa, Vol. I, 
pp. 430, 431 ; The Lemars Sentinel, February 3, 1885. 

2" The Lemars Sentinel, November 10, 1881, October 12, 
1882, April 12, 1883. 

^^* The Le Mars Semi-Weekly Sentinel gives this account 
of a typical Derby week in its issue of January 11, 1887. 

"5 The Lemars Sentinel, June 21, 1887. 

The only discordant note heard during these jubilee days 
was the letter of P. J. Dunn protesting against the celebra- 
tion because Queen Victoria had done nothing to ameliorate 
conditions in the Empire, least of all in Ireland where the 
landlords during the years 1841-1851 had been allowed to 
destroy 269,253 dwellings and in 1849 to evict 50,000 fam- 
ilies. — The Lemars Sentinel, July 5, 1887. 

CHAPTER XIX 
256 The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), June 2, 9, 16, 1880. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 281 

^^' Sioux City Journal, quoted in The Iowa Liberal (Le 
Mars), June 16, 1880. 

-^^ The Lemars Sentinel, April 14, 1881. 

^^^ The Lemars Sentinel, February 3, 1881. 

2«° The Lemars Sentinel, March 30, 1882. 

2«i The Lemars Sentinel, June 29, July 13, 1882. 

262 The Lemars Sentinel, January 25, 1883, replied as fol- 
lows to Dacres's stricture: "You ought to be thankful you 
didn't have a bullet hole bored through you, like the little 
Irishman had a few weeks ago." 

2«3 The Lemars Sentinel, June 27, 1884. 

^^^The Lemars Sentinel, March 7, 1884, November 11, 
1887. 

265 The Lemars Sentinel, August 18, 1881. 

-6" The Lemars Sentinel, February 16, 23, May 31, Decem- 
ber 21, 1882. 

2" The Leinars Sentinel, July 20, 27, 1882. 

268 The Lemars Sentinel, December 28, 1882. 

269 The Lemars Sentinel, March 22, July 26, November 14, 
1883, October 10, 1884. 

2''o The Lemars Sentinel, October 7, 1884, February 3, 24, 
1885, January 11, 14, June 21, July 12, 1887. 

Charles Daeres is reported as having met his death acci- 
dentally in a shooting affray at Yankton, South Dakota. 

CHAPTER XX 

2^1 Freeman 's History of Plymouth County, Iowa, Vol. I, 
pp. 431, 432. The Minute Book of the Prairie Club, which 
still has rooms but not much support, is in possession of Mr. 



282 



THE BRITISH IN IOWA 



Adair Colpoys — minutes of the organization meeting are 
not recorded. See also The Lemars Sentinel, February 10, 
December 15, 22, 1881, August 24, 1882. 

2" The Lemars Sentinel, January 25, 1883, January 18, 
1884, June 5, 1885. 

=" The Lemars Sentinel, January 22, 29, 1884, January 13, 
February 6, 1885. 

'^''* Minute Book of the Prairie Club, p. 71. During the 
first twelve years of the club's existence, the treasurer's book 



contains the names of nearly three hundred Britishers, 
complete list deserves a place here: 



The 



AUBERTIN, J. D. 

Anson, J. O. 
Anson, O. H. 
Aldersey, T. 
ashton, j. d. w, 
Allen, E. T. 
Allen, C. T. R. 
Abbot, F. W. 
Allan, W. T. B. 
Andrew, O. 

Bather, G. G. 
Benson, C. F. 
Benson, C. W. 
Blomefield, M. 
Briggs, H. E. 
Briggs, W. C. 
Brodie, M. F. 
Brodie, F. G. 
Brockbank, J. C. 
buckland, j. b. 
Bristowe, L. H. 
Beneoke, W. E. T. 
Bidgood, H. W. 
Barchard, H. S. 
Blackwell, J. H. 



Blackwell, W. F. 
Banks, R. F. 
burnside, e. f. 
Baker, F. P. 
Burton, A. G. T. 

Chapman, M. J. 
Christian, H. C. 
Close, F. 
Close, J. 
Close, W. 
Clowes, S. 
Close, J. H. 
Clowes, W. L. 
Colledge, a. C. 
Courage, H. M. 
Colpoys, A. G. 
Cunningham, H. N. 
cumberhatch, i/. t. 
Croft, G. B. 
Crawley, E. M. 
Collins, J. Victor 
Collins, L. H. 
Carter, H. E. 



Colledge, A. J. 
Clarkson, a. 
Cooper, J. C. 
Cowan, J. I. 
Cowan, W. B. 
Chamberlin, R. F. 
Carver, F. 
Colebank, S. 
Colston, A. V. 
Cobbe, L. C. 
Corbett, H. E. 
Clifton, W. H. 
Coke, R. G. 
Clakke, G. a. C. 

D acres, C. 
Dawson, S. B. M. 
Dawson, W. B. 
Dealtry, T. 
Dent, A. R. T. 
Douglas, J. 
Downing, G. C. 
Drake, H. 
dodsworth, f. c. s. 



CaRMICHAEL, J. M. G. DODSWORTH, M. B. 

Campbell, W. M. O. Duncan, C. M. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 



283 



dowglass, t. 
Duff, W. G. 
De Moleyns, E. 
De Pledge, H. 
dunwaters, a. g. 

eccles, c. h. 

ECCLES, p. C. 

Eller, C. 
Eller, H. 
Eller, J. 
Elliott, Gut P. 
Elliott, N. L. 
Elliott, F. N. 
Eykyn, F. B. 
Edgell, W. F. 
Eustace, J. S. 

Farquhar, Albert 
Farquhar, Charles 
Farquhar, Jas. 
Farquhar, Joe 
Farquhar, Mowbray 
Farquhar, Will E. 
Fullbrook, E. a. 
fullbrook, r. 
Fenton, James 
Fenton, R. O. 
Ffoulkes, S. W. 
Figgis, W. W. 
Flowers, C. A. 
Fairbairn, F. R, 

Garnett, G. 
Gaskell, S. W. 
Gee, a. 
Gibson, A. B. C. 

(tOLIGHTLY, C. H. 

Grayson, J. H. 
Grouse, E. 
Gunner, H. D. 
Gkey, Algernon 



GiLMORE, Wm. G. 
Geoffrey, R. 
Graham, R. G. M. 
Guinness, C. 

Hathaway, H. P. 
Heitland, a, R. 
Hill, R. G. 

HiLLYARD, H. 

HoBART, Lord 
Horsburgh, F. 
Harper, A. E. 

HOPKINSON, J, 
HURLE, J. C. 

Hill, E. T, 
hulbert, w. g. 
Harvey, I. A. 
Hope, J. G. 
HOTHAM, Geo. 
Hanbury, H. 
Heap, S. 
Henslow, G. G. 
Hawtrey, G. 
Harrison, R. W. 
Hyde, E. 
Hanson, S. G. 
Harbord, R. a. 

Jervis, C. L. 
Jervis, R. C. 
Johnson, D. G. 
Jameson, S. B. 

Kennard, R. B, 

KiRWAN, G. 

Kirwan, L. 
Maitland 
Kay, Chas. 
King, E. W. G. 

Langley, a. 
Lascelles, a. G. 



Lord, A. H. M. 
Leycester, L. 
lockhart, w. c. 
Langdon, G. H. 

LiTTLEDALE, E. 

Long, John 
Lucas, Adolphe 

Lane, Chas. 

Madden, J. B. 
Mylius, C. 
Marsh, Percy 
Mowbray, A. 
Medd, W. H. B. 
Master, A. C. C. 
Maclagan, C. D. 
Maclagan, G. C. 
Maclagan, R. B, 
Maitland, A. W. 
Margesson, H. p. 
Margesson, M. 
Margesson, R. 
Milne, S. 
Moreton, F. J. 
Moreton, H. J. 
Moreton, Capt. R. 
Morgan, T. 
Mansel, H. G. 
Montgomery, R. H. 

Newmarch, L. a. 
Newman, A. 
Nesfield, E. 
Nash, J. R. 
Nicholson, B. 
Nicholson, R. 

Oldfield, C. B. 
Orde, Julian W. 

Paget, A. H. 
Paley, F. 



284 



THE BRITISH IN IOWA 



Parke, A. 
Parke, C. 
Parke, E. E. 
Parke, W. 
Payne, F. 
Payne, R. 
Payne, W. W. 
Paul, H. 
Paulton, W. 
Paulton, W. a. 
Pierce, J. T, 
Prescott, p. E. 
Preston, A. G. 
Preston, J. H. 
Price, F. R. 
Price, H. J. 
Potter, R. E. 
Pardoe, O. T. 
Philson, Mr. 
Patten, H. S. 

Raymond, O. T. 
Rickards, H. 
Roberts, F. C. 
Robertson, C. L. 
Robertson, E. F. 
Robinson, Capt. F. R 
Romanes, F. E. 
Ronaldson, a. 
RoLLO, Hon. Eric 
ROLLO, Hon. H. E. 
Reid, a. a. p. 
Reid, F. R. 
Richards, G. J. 



Richards, H. O. K. 
Richards, H. W. 
Ratliff, Thos. 

SIMMS, H. A. 

Simpson, W. D. 

Sutton, A. T. 

Stoner, W. G. 

Stubbs, J. W. H. 

Sowerby, C. 

Stevens, W. H. P. 

Stoughton, H. 

Sharp, R. W. 

Sharp, W. A. 

Stanier, Guy 

Sugden, Hon. H. F. Wann, W. H. 



Thursby, E. H. 
Taylour, E. E. 
Thelwell, E. L. 
Tarleton, H. 
Trotter, H. G. 

Vernon, W. G. 

Harcourt 
Van Sommer, J. 
Veal, F. K. 

Wakefield, J. W. 
Walker, Richard 
Walker, Robert 
Waller, H. N. 



Sinclair, A. C. 
Sturgess, a. H. 
Sturgess, Edw. D. 
Statter, G. F. 
Smyth, Chas. G. 
Starky, B. B. 
swinton, j. c. b. 
Smalley, J. 
Stanhope, R. 
Swinburne, W. 

Taylor, H. L. 
Taylor, L. 
Taylor, T. C. 
Thomson, B. H. 
Tottenham, E. H. 
Touch, J. W. 
Tibbitt, J. 



Warren, J. B. 
Watson, H. A. 
Watson, J. G. 
Wild, J. 

Williamson, E. P. 
Winstanley, E. 
Wake, T. 
Walkinshaw, J. 
Wraight, p. 
Webster, D. 
Wilson, G. 
Waddilove, J. C. 
Weir, A. Y. 

Young, David A. 
Young, Wm. 
YONGE, F. A. 



2"r^e loiva Liberal (Le Mars), January 21, 1880; The 
Lemars Sentinel, February 12, July 7, 1881, June 15, 1882, 
February 29, June 6, October 7, 1884, June 9, 1885. 

2^^ The Lemars Sentinel, March 3, 1885. These journeys 
to and from England were chronicled in the Le Mars nevv^s- 
papers with such frequency that references are not deemed 
important here. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 285 

2" The Lemors Sentinel, December 22, 1881, January 5, 
1882. 

2^^ New Mexico News and Express, December 31, 1881. 

2^^ The Lemars Sentinel, February 3, March 24, April 14, 
1881. The PauUin boys had a great wheat farm of 4000 
acres in Elkhorn Township, Plymouth County, and another 
in O'Brien County. See also Perkins's History of O'Brien 
County, Iowa, p. 352. 

The death of Daniel Paullin is recorded in the following 
editorial : 

"Mr. James B. Close received word last week of the death 
of a very dear friend of his, D. Paullin, Esq. late of Quincy, 
Illinois, at Dubuque, on Thursday April 7th. It was largely 
through Mr. Paullin 's favorable representations that the 
Close Bros, were induced to come here, for in their inter- 
course with him they had learned to attach great weight 
to his judgment. They had found him to be a gentleman of 
integrity and honor, and the longer they knew him, the more 
they came to respect and revere him. About a year ago Wm. 
B. Close married Mr. Paullin 's daughter, Mary, in New York, 
and went to England where they now are. Henry and D. 
Edward, sons of the deceased are well known here, especially 
the former who at present resides in Cherokee, and very 
largely engaged in stock raising. Though the elder Paullin 
was wholly unknown to our people, yet the fact that he was 
remotely instrumental in turning such a healthy stream of 
home seekers in this direction^ entitles his memory to grate- 
ful recognition." — The Letnars Sentinel, April 14, 1881. 

Henry and D. Edward Paullin, graduates of Harvard, be- 
came engaged in stock farming, the former at Cherokee and 
the latter on the site of the present town of Paullina in 
O'Brien County. 

2«° The Lemars Sentinel, October 6, 1881, May 11, 1882, 
August 25, 1884. 



286 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

James B. Close and Samuel H. Graves later married sisters 
of Mrs. Fred B. Close. 

28ir/ie Lemars Sentinel, September 29, 1881. The letter 
was published in The Lemars Sentinel, October 6, 1881, and 
reads as follows : 

"Lemars, Iowa, 27th September 1881. 

DEAR MADAM: — As representing probably the largest colony of 

Englishmen in the United States, we venture to intrude upon your great 

sorrow so far as to send you a letter expressing our hearty sympathy 

with you in your loss. 

"You stand in the sad position of chief mourner among a world of 
mourners. The sorrow by which all are touched is focussed upon you. 
In the presence of such grief as yours we cannot but stand awe struck. 
"We can assure you that the nobility of the late President's charac- 
ter both public and private, and his patient courage and resignation 
in the face of death, have excited our warmest admiration. 

"We can only hope and pray that the strength which has sustained 
you through the late long, patient struggle between life and death, 
may be granted to you in the remaining duties of life. We are Madam, 
Yours in true sympathy, 
H. N. Cunningham, G. C. Maclagan, 
R. MoRETON, John H. Grayson, 

James B. Close, James S. Fenton, 
J. C. Cooper. 

-^2 The Lemars Sentinel, February 2, October 19, Novem- 
ber 9, 1882, March 28. 1884. 

Captain Moreton made an address at the graves of Hornby 
and Dalton, on the occasion of a double funeral. — The Daily 
Liberal (Le Mars), January 30, 1882. 

^^•'' The Lemars Sentinel, January 5, March 28, 1884, Jan- 
uary 27, 1885. 

CHAPTER XXI 

''^"The Iowa Liberal (Le Mars), April 6, July 27, 1881; 
The Lemars Sentinel, March 10, 17, June 2, July 28, August 
11, 1881; Records of St. George's Parish (Le Mars), pp. 5, 8. 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 287 

2^^ The Leniars Sentinel, October 6, August 11, 25, 1881, 
November 7, 1883. 

The reference to Rev. Howard's meeting Jack Wakefield 
at a wine is likely to be misconstrued by American readers: 
it means that when the proctor was making his rounds at 
Cambridge as the university's police officer he encountered 
Jack drinking wine at some time or place prohibited by the 
university statutes. Under such circumstances the proctor 
took his name and college address and requested him to ap- 
pear next day to pay the fine prescribed for such an offense. 
This system of discipline still prevails at Oxford and Cam- 
bridge and contributes somewhat to their treasuries. 

286 y^g Leniars Sentinel, September 15, October 6, 20, 27, 
November 10, 1881, January 26, July 13, 1882, January 18, 
1883. 

2" The Lemurs Sentinel, July 27, December 28, 1882. See 
also Journal of the Annual Convention of the Diocese of 
Iowa, 1887, p. 80, 1890, p. 20. 

288 The Iowa Churchman. See also The Lemars Sentinel, 
October 17, 1882, February 8, November 7, 1883. 

^^® The Lemars Sentinel, February 5, April 8, 1884, Jan- 
uary 9, June 9, 1885, June 17, 24, 1887. See also Records 
of St. George's Parish (Le Mars), pp. 107-115, 136. 

2^° The Lemars Sentinel, August 17, 1882, April 22, 1884, 
January 6, 13, 27, 1885. 

^^^ Mr. and Mrs. Arthur E. Marsh had come from England, 
Mr. Marsh being at Le Mars as early as 1880. Their son, 
Arthur Henry (born on July 12, 1883), was baptized at 
Calliope by Rev. H. N. Cunningham. — Records of St. 
George's Parish (Le Mars), p. 143. 

Since his ordination. Rev. Marsh has for many years served 
as rector at Blair, Nebraska. His son graduated from the 



288 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

University of Nebraska; was elected Rhodes Scholar for 
Nebraska in 1905 ; studied theology at Keble College, Oxford ; 
received the degrees of B. A. and M. A. from the University 
of Oxford; was ordained a priest in the United States; and 
was vicar in charge of St. Paul's Church in Omaha when 
war was declared against Germany in 1917. He became a 
chaplain with the rank of first lieutenant, and sailed for 
France on July 30, 1918. On the night of October 3, after 
only two months of service, he was gassed and died of pneu- 
monia at Vittel in the Vosges on October 7th. The younger 
Marsh was well known to the writer who spent the same 
three years at Oxford and had the pleasure of his company 
on vacations in North Wales, the Scandinavian countries, 
and Germany. 

^^^ Mr. Henry H. Drake married Mr. Richmond's daughter 
and Sioux City has been their home for many years. 

^^® Journal of the A7inual Convention of the Diocese of 
Iowa, 1887, pp. 7, 9, 65-70, 1890, pp. 40, 41, 1893, pp. 7, 8, 
114. 

CHAPTER XXII 

2°* Close's Farming in North-Western Iowa, p. 24; Har- 
per's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. LXII, pp. 766, 767. 

2®^ These facts were gathered from interviews with Mr. Ed 
Dalton of Le Mars and Mr. Henry H. Drake of Sioux City 
and from a letter written by William B. Close on November 
30, 1921. 

'^^ These words with music, according to Mr. Henry H. 
Drake, were written about the year 1884 by R. T. Patrick 
and W. D. Harmon to be sung "any old time". 

2»^ See footnote 144. 

^^^ It is interesting to note the strength of the British- 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 289 

born element in the population of the seven counties of 
northwestern Iowa since 1880, omitting a cpnsiderable num- 
ber of British- Americans : 

Counties 1880 1885 1890 1895 1900 1905 1915 1920 

Plymouth 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
Woodbury 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
Cherolcee 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
'Brien 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
Sioitx 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
Osceola 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 
Lyon 

English 

Irish 

Scotch 

Welsh 

For these figures see United States Census, 1880, Vol. I, 
pp. 506-508, 1890, Vol. II, pp. 628, 629, 1900, Vol. I, Pt. 1, 



365 


601 


616 


489 


377 


303 


204 


184 


291 


444 


385 


332 


260 


205 


159 


119 


70 


120 


120 


105 


75 


81 


72 


65 




13 


20 


21 


18 


12 


8 


12 


230 


636 


977 


658 


666 


648 


845 


731 


512 


1159 


1271 


988 


909 


855 


675 


548 


61 


141 


236 


183 


182 


197 


205 


192 




15 


32 


19 


21 


13 


26 


25 


185 


275 


261 


257 


224 


199 


198 


164 


179 


246 


247 


249 


223 


196 


149 


131 


80 


116 


134 


107 


107 


95 


67 


57 




11 


10 


31 


27 


13 


8 


9 


91 


154 


196 


156 


150 


125 


238 


94 


103 


137 


193 


199 


167 


137 


86 


62 


32 


87 


81 


66 


69 


67 


59 


45 




11 


10 


11 


14 


9 


7 


7 


60 


146 


203 


159 


133 


103 


70 


47 


102 


164 


236 


205 


191 


149 


72 


65 


10 


23 


39 


31 


26 


18 


7 


6 




10 


3 


8 


2 


3 


1 


3 


64 


128 


123 


103 


69 


59 


37 


27 


38 


68 


49 


52 


70 


58 


28 


23 


9 


54 


30 


24 


17 


10 


7 


2 




4 


26 


9 


5 


2 


5 


3 


21 


97 


172 


103 


81 


70 


49 


42 


23 


47 


93 


99 


98 


84 


48 


27 


9 


16 


31 


40 


30 


14 


20 


7 




2 


5 


6 


4 


4 


2 


3 



290 THE BRITISH IN IOWA 

pp. 750, 751; Population: Iowa, Composition and Character- 
istics of the Population, 1920, pp. 21, 22 ; and Census of Iowa, 
1885, pp. 164-166, 1895, pp. 304-307, 1905, pp. 517-520, and 
1915, pp. 462-464. 

In 1885 and 1895 the British-born inhabitants of towns 
were separately reported and the returns for Le Mars and 
Sioux City were as follows: 





Le Mars 






Sioux City 






1885 


1895 




1885 


1895 


Canadians 


132 


162 


Canadians 


618 


636 


English 


154 


144 


English 


341 


428 


Irish 


102 


94 


Irish 


872 


672 


Scotch 


29 


26 


Scotch 


95 


109 



See Census of Iowa, 1885, pp. 61, 81, 1895, pp. 332, 333. 

^°° The Western Town Lot Company platted all these 
towns in 1882 and 1883 and named them after the Duke of 
Sutherland, Sir Richard Granville (the navigator and 
explorer), Henry Ireton (Oliver Cromwell's son-in-law), 
Hawarden (William E. Gladstone's home). Admiral Lord 
Charles Beresford, and Colonel Alcester. Plymouth and 
O'Brien counties had been created earlier and were named 
in honor of the landing place of the Pilgrim Fathers and 
William Smith O'Brien, the leader of the movement for 
Irish independence in 1848. The name "Alton" can also 
be traced back to a town in England. The village of Archer 
in O'Brien County was named by an Englishman, John H. 
Archer, who has been heavily interested in land in that 
neighborhood for many years. 

The Western Town Lot Company was incorporated in the 
interest of the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company 
for the purpose of securing, subdividing, and platting the 
land needed for town sites, and for placing lots on the market 
at reasonable rates so that settlers should not be at the 
mercy of speculators who usually demanded extortionate 



NOTES AND REFERENCES 291 

prices. All the proceeds secured from the sale of the lots 
reached the treasury of the railroad company. — A History 
of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago 
and North Western Railway (1908), p. 35. 

The Close brothers did not go in for town-planning, but 
their village of Quorn in southeastern Plymouth County re- 
ceived its name from the place in Leicestershire, England, 
where Fred Close had enjoyed many a holiday in fox-hunt- 
ing. The Quorn Hunt is perhaps the best known in England 
to-day. 



INDEX 



INDEX 



Abbott, F. W., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Aberdeen (Scotland), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Abingdon Agricultural Society, 
dinner of, 167 

Adams's rink, hockey games at, 
202 

Agriculture, prospectuses concern- 
ing, 90; contributions of Close 
brothers to, 120-128; impetus 
to, 129 

Akron, cricket team of, 191 ; foot- 
ball game with, 204; visits at, 
231 ; change of name to, 238 ; 
Episcopalians at, 243; mission 
church at, 243 ; English resident 
at, 247 (see also Portlandville) 

Alberta (Canada), lowans in, 47 

Albion House, naming of, 96; 
festivals at, 227, 234; death at, 
234 

Albion stables, 138 

Alcester, Colonel, town named for, 
290 

Alcester (South Dakota), origin 
of name of, 252, 290 

Aldersey, Tom, part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 ; services of, on 
committee, 280; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Alfred, mention of, 253 

Aliens, amount of land owned by, 
116, 117, 268, 269 

Allamakee County, Irish in, 43 



Allan, W. T. B., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Alleghany Mountains, Frederick 
B. Close in, 57, 60 

Allen, C. T. R., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Allen, E. T., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Allen, Ehla, presence of, at dance, 
227 

Allison, Judge, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Allison, Mrs., presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Allison, Fannie, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Allison, Hattie, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Allison's drug store, mention of, 
212 

Alton, origin of name of, 252, 
290; founding of, 272 

Alva (Scotland), marriage at, 233 

America, peopling of, 7, 8, 10; 
literature relating to, 17; lec- 
tures on, 17, 18; books about, 
23, 24 

American Press Association, ac- 
count of, 275 

Americans, ancestry of, 7; migra- 
tion of, 10; purchase of Eng- 
lish farms by, 114, 115; farms 
rented by, 127; attitude of, 
toward farm pupils, 151, 153, 
154, 155; attitude of, toward 



295 



296 



INDEX 



English, 171, 213, 214; attitude 
of English toward, 215-220; in- 
vitation of, to Prairie Club, 
224; dinner dance given by, 
224, 225, 226; admission of, to 
Prairie Club, 226 

Anderson, Ed., part of, in foot- 
ball game, 207 

Andrew, O., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Angles, migration of, 7 

Anglican Church, separation from, 
237 (see also Episcopal Church) 

Anglo-American syndicate, land 
owned by, 268 

Anglo-Saxons, kinship of, with 
Americans, 19 

Angus, Scotch in, 48 

Anson, J. O., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Anson, O. H., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Apollo Hall (Le Mars), ball held 
at, 209, 233, 234; concert at, 
224; church services in, 237 

Appanoose County, Welsh in, 44; 
English in, 50; Scotch in, 257 

Archer, John H., town named for, 
290 

Archer, origin of name of, 252, 
290 

Archimedes, mention of, 183 

Arkansas, land owned in, by 
aliens, 268 

Arlington Township (Woodbury 
County), loss of sheep in, 134 

Armour and Company, employee 
of, 177 

Ashton, J. D. W., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Asia, taigrations in, 7 



Atchinson Eoad, purchase of land 
along, 118 

Atkinson, Percy, burial place of, 
248; college of, 273 

Atlantic Ocean, voyage across, 26; 
freight charges on, 71 

Aubertin, J. D., return of, to Eng- 
land, 246; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Australia, emigrants to, 23 ; death 
of Jack Wakefield in, 248 

Author's preface, 7-13 

"Bacchus", prize won by, 197 
"Badger", race won by, 200 
Baggage, description of, 162 
Baker, Francis P., residence of, 

247 ; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 282 
Ball, J. C, office in charge of, 102 
Balsinger, Mr., farm of, 181 
Baltimore (Maryland), roughs in, 

211 
Banks, R. F., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Banks, English employed in, 176 
Barchard, H. S., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
Barlow, Captain, farm of, 137 
Barlow Hall, 137 
Barnett, Philip, advantages of 

Iowa pointed out by, 92 
Barns, provision for, 63, 65, 123; 

cost of, 66, 84, 85 
Barrow, Fred, horse owned by, 199 
Bather, G. G., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Beach, C. M., land owned by, 116 
Beacon, Welsh in, 45 
Beck, W. H., presence of, at 

dance, 227 



INDEX 



297 



Benecke, W. E. T., membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 282 

Benson, Mr., absence of, from 
game, 205; presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Benson, Mrs., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Benson, C, services of, on cricket 
committee, 190 

Benson, Cecil, buck killed by, 189; 
horse ridden by, 200; return of, 
to England, 248 

Benson, Cecil F., partnership of, 
in Iowa Land Company, 115; 
boat race with, 202; reference 
to, 262; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Benson, Constantino W., partner- 
ship of, in Close Brothers and 
Company, 81; hospitality to, 
100; firm of, 102; railroad 
plans announced by, 108; with- 
drawal of, from Close, Benson 
and Company, 114; letter from, 
on Iowa, 170; farming activ- 
ities of, 174; burial place of, 
248; college of, 274; brother 
of, 277; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Benson, Robert, farm pupil sys- 
tem described by, 142; article 
by, on English colony, 169, 170; 
firm of, 277; railroad financed 
by, 277 

Beresford, Charles, town named 
for, 290 

Beresford (South Dakota), origin 
of name of, 252 

Berkshire hogs, raising of, 132 

Bethune, Mr., part of, in cricket 
game, 193 



Bidgood, H. W., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
Big Sioux River, bluffs of, 89 ; 

sheep raising on bluffs of, 133; 

ranch near, 235 
Bigelow, Poultney, English colony 

described by, 139, 140, 167, 168, 

169; statement of, 273 
Bigelow (Minnesota), purchase of 

site of, 113; mention of, 271 
Birmingham (England), emigra- 
tion advocated at, 18, 19, 36; 

mention of, 258 
Black, J., part of, in athletic 

meet, 201 
Black Hawk County, Irish in, 43; 

Canadians in, 46; English in, 

50; British in, 257 
Blackburn (England), James B. 

Close at, 69 
Blackwell, J. H., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
Blackwell, W. F., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
Blair (Nebraska), polo club or- 
ganized at, 203; mention of, 

287 
Blake, Mr., part of, in paper 

chase, 188 
Blizzards, reference to, 91 ; sheep 

lost in, 1.34 
Blomefield, M., horse owned by, 

198; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 282 
Bloodgood, John, purchase of land 

from, 68, 69, 71 
Bloomington (see Muscatine) 
Bloomington ( Illinois ) , land bought 

from speculators in, 101 
Blunt, W. M., horse owned by, 

198 



298 



INDEX 



Boat races, holding of, 202, 203 

(see also Rowing) 
Boats, loading of, 21 
Bohemians, number of, in Iowa, 

257 
Bolton, J. H., presence of, at 

dance, 227 
Boone County, Scotch in, 48 ; Eng- 
lish in, 50 
Boonesboro, Scotch in, 48 
Bower, A., arrival of, in Iowa, 161 
Boyesen, A., land owned by, 269 
Braddon, H. L,, church services 

conducted by, 241 
Bradley, C. C, acknowledgment 

to, 11 
Bradley, R. E,, paper edited by, 

218 
Brasenose College, clergyman from, 

238, 239 
Breaking, cost of, 63, 66, 126; 
rapidity of, 64, 123; advantage 
of, 66; importance of, 83, 84; 
work of, 121; contracts for, 124 
Brick block, erection of, 174 
Bricks, making of, 175 
Bridson, W. P., advantages of 

Iowa pointed out by, 92 
Briggs, H. E., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Briggs, W. C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Bright, John, conference of Wm. 

B. Close with, 141 
Bristol (England), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 
Bristowe, L. H., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
British, immigration of, 10, 11; 
advantages of Iowa described 
to, 19, 20; number of, in Iowa, 



32, 42-53, 288, 289 ; adaptabUity 
of, 53; land ovraed by, 116, 
117; naturalization of, 216; 
political affiliations of, 216; dis- 
appearance of, from northwest- 
ern Iowa, 245-252; names de- 
rived from, 252 (see also Eng- 
lish) 
British-Americans, number of, in 

Iowa, 32, 45-47 
British colonies, circulation of 
Iowa publicity articles in, 170 
British colony (see English colony) 
British Isles, immigrants to, 7; 
emigration from, 33; dissemina- 
tion of literature in, 34; eize 
of, 117; burials in, 248; return 
of colonists to, 248 
British Land and Mortgage Com- 
pany, land owned by, 268 
British Working Men's Associa- 
tion, correspondent of, 30 
Brockbank, J. C, commission 
business of, 174; interest of, in 
cricket, 190, 191; trip of, to 
England, 230; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 
Brodie, F. G., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Brodie, M. F., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Broken 'Kettle, mine at, 183; 

cricket practice at, 190 
Brooks, Sir William Cunliffe, busi- 
ness of, 69 
Brown, Mr., part of, in football 

game, 207 
Buchanan, Jennie, presence of, at 

dance, 227 
Buchanan County, Irish in, 43; 
Canadians in, 46 



INDEX 



299 



Buckinghamshire, Earl of, mention 
of, 166, 248, 249 

Buekland, J. B., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Bull, John, mention of, 184, 200 

Bunker Hill, mention of, 211 

Burlington, need of skilled labor 
in, 26; Irish in, 42; English in, 
49 

Burnside, E. F., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Burton, A. G. T., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Bushnell, J. P., pamphlet pub- 
lished by, 40 

Business, opportunities for, 149, 
167; account of, in English 
colony, 174-177 

Butler County, Canadians in, 46; 
English in, 50 

Butter, awards made on, 39; pro- 
duction of, 39, 135, 136 

C. R. AND Land Company, land 
owned by, 268 

Cadets, mention of, 74, 90 

Caleb, mention of, 172 

California, waste of wheat in, 70; 
burial in, 248 

Calliope, Episcopalians at, 243; 
mention of, 287 

Camanche, mention of, 30 

Cambridge University, Close broth- 
ers at, 57; graduates of, at 
Le Mars, 139, 274; incident con- 
cerning, 239 ; representative of, 
249 

Cambridge University Boat Club, 
presidents of, 57 

Campbell, Mr., part of, in paper 
chase, 188 



Campbell, John, marriage of, 233 
Campbell, W. McOran, farm of, 

136; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 282 
Canada, emigrants to, 23; butter 

exported from, 39; wheat pro- 
duced in, 39; trip through, 60; 

objections to, 60, 157; land 

titles in, 83; English resident 

in, 92; visitors from, 229 
Canadian Mounted Police, member 

of, 248 
Canadians, number of, in Iowa, 

45-47, 51, 52, 290 
Canals, construction of, 70, 71 
Canton (South Dakota), land pur- 
chased near, 106 
Cape May (England), mention of, 

258 
Capital, amount of, needed for 

English settlers, 20, 21, 79, 80; 

investment of, 98; profit on, 

130; lack of, 184 
Carlin, Lord, visit of, to Iowa, 

229 
Carlton stock farm, description of, 

136 
Carmichael, F., part of, in "tug 

of war", 208; part of, in polo 

match, 208 
Carmichael, J. M. G., membership 

of, in Prairie Club, 282 
Carroll Herald, mention of, 110, 
Carter, H., reference to, 262 

111 
Carter, H. E., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Carver, F., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 282 
Carver, J. F., part of, in tennis 

tournament, 208 



300 



INDEX 



Cass County (North Dakota), land 
bought in, 259 

Castle Garden (New York City), 
mention of, 33 

Catholicism, spread of, in Iowa, 35 

Cattle, number of, 132; range 
feeding of, 135; kinds of, 136, 
137, 138 

Cedar County, Irish in, 43 

Cedar Rapids, Irish at, 42; Cana- 
dians at, 46; English at, 49 

Centennial Committee, quarters 
provided by, 57, 58 

Centennial of 1879, regatta at, 5 7, 58 

Center Township (Clinton Coun- 
ty), people in, 30 

Cerro Gordo County, Canadians in, 
46; English in, 50 

Chamberlin, R. F., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Chapman, Montague J., insurance 
business of, 174, 175; office of, 
184; share of, in organization 
of the Prairie Club, 222; men- 
tion of, 226, 228; speech by, 
231; western trip of, 232; 
marriage of, 232; residence of, 
248; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 282 

Chapman, Mrs. M. J., presence of, 
at picnic, 228; western trip of, 
232 

Chariton, mention of, 35 

Cheese, awards made on, 39 

Cheltenham (England), literature 
distributed in, 36; mention of, 
150 

Cherokee, number of people from, 
196 ; polo club at, 203 ; mission 
church at, 243, 244; burial at, 
248; population of, 260 



Cherokee County, Canadians in, 
46; purchase of land in, by 
Close brothers, 68, 71; railroad 
in, 72 ; description of, 88 ; 
population of, 260; British in, 
289 

Chicago (Illinois), amount of corn 
at, 39 ; cost of transporting 
grain from, 70, 71 ; market at, 
72, 148; journey to, 103; office 
of Close brothers at, 114; sale 
of wool at, 134; comment by 
paper of, on English colony, 
167; trains from, 194; horse 
races mentioned in press of, 
196; races at, 201; burial at, 
248 

Chicago and Great Western Rail- 
road, financing of, 277 

Chicago and Northwestern Rail- 
road, sites for station selected 
by, 30, 290, 291; route of, 101; 
coming of, to Iowa, 121 

Chicago Herald, letter in, 154 

Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul 
Railroad, coming of, to Iowa, 
72; claim of, to land, 104, 265; 
purchase of land from, 113 

Chickasaw County, Irish in, 43 

Chiene, Hugh C. P., reference to, 
263 

Chiene, Hugh Lyon Playfair, 
marriage of, 233 

Chiene, J. D., part of, in football 
game, 205, 206, 207 

Children, occupations for, 25 

China, 175, 230 

Christian, H. C, part of, in foot- 
ball game, 206, 207; presence 
of, at picnic, 228; western trip 
of, 232; residence of, 247; 



INDEX 



301 



membership of, in Prairie Club, 
282 

Churches, activities of, among 
English colonists, 237-244 

Civil War, mention of, 23; immi- 
gration during, 33 

Clarke, G. A. C, lumber yard of, 
177; residence of, 247; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 282 

Clarkson, A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Clayton County, Irish in, 43 

Cleveland, Welsh in, 45 

Clifton, W. H., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Climate, description of, 91, 127, 
147, 170 

Clinton, associations at, 30; Irish 
at, 42 ; Canadians at, 46 ; Eng- 
lish at, 49 

Clinton County, county seat of, 
29; Irish in, 43; Canadians in, 
46; English in, 50; British in, 
257 

Close, Frederick Brooks, coming 
of, to Virginia, 57, 58, 60, 62; 
purchase of land in Iowa by, 
59-62, 68-71 ; farming operations 
of, 63-67 ; statement by, on pro- 
hibition, 110, 111; withdrawal 
of, from firm, 114; death of, 
119, 203; farm of, 132; farm 
pupils aided by, 143; marriage 
of, 167, 233, 234; part of, in 
paper chase, 188; horse owned 
by, 197, 198; interest of, in 
races, 199, 200, 208; invitation 
of, to club, 201 ; interest of, in 
polo, 203, 208; part of, in foot- 
ball game, 205, 206, 207; part 
of, in "tug of war", 208; pres- 



ence of, at picnic, 228 ; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 282 ; 
interest of, in hunting, 291 (see 
also Close brothers) 

Close, Mrs. Fred B., death of hus- 
band witnessed by, 203; sisters 
of, 286 (see also Humble, Mar- 
garet) 

Close, J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Close, J. H., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Close, James Brooks, interest of, 
in rowing, 57, 58; coming of, 
to Iowa, 69; statement by, con- 
cerning organization of firm, 80, 
81, 99, 100; offices of, 102, 114; 
Iowa Land Company in charge 
of, 106; death of, 119; farm of, 
132 ; farm pupils aided by, 143 ; 
marriage of, 189, 286; 'horse 
owned by, 199; race won by, 
200; part of, in athletic meet, 
201; college of, 273, 274; letter 
to, 285; letter from, 286 (see 
also Close brothers) 

Close, John Brooks, interest of, in 
rowing, 57, 58; business career 
of, 69, 70; death of, 119; visit 
of, to Iowa, 229, 259, 260 (see 
also Close brothers) 

Close, William Brooks, acknowl- 
edgment to, 13; interest of, in 
rowing, 57, 58, 75; acquaintance 
of, with Daniel Paullin, 58, 59; 
engagement of, 59; purchase of 
land in Iowa by, 59-62, 68-71; 
reasons for investment in Iowa 
given by, 60; farming opera- 
tions of, 63-67, 131, 132, 239; 
comment by, on farmers' pro- 



802 



INDEX 



fits, 70; advertisements of Iowa 
sent to England by, 75, 76; 
letters of, concerning Iowa, 77; 
marriage of, to Mary PauUin, 
77, 233, 285; recommenda- 
tion of, 94; statement of, rela- 
tive to purchase of land, 101; 
tour conducted by, 103; offices 
of, 114; present location of, 
119 ; sheep raising described by, 
133, 134; interest of, in blood- 
ed stock, 138; conference of, 
with John Bright, 141; account 
of farm pupil system given by, 
142-144; horse owned by, 198, 
199; trip of, to England, 228; 
return of, to England, 248; 
letters of, 257, 258, 259; col- 
lege of, 273, 274; pamphlet of, 
275; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 282 ; letter from, 288 (see 
also Close brothers) 

Close, Mrs. Wm. B., trip of, to 
England, 228 (see also PauUin, 
Mary) 

Close, Benson and Company, firm 
of, 102; dissolution of, 114 

Close brothers, purchase of land 
by, 74, 75, 120, 121, 122; num- 
ber of farms owned by, 75, 76, 
127; profits of, 76; agreement 
of, with transportation lines, 
78; advice offered by, 78, 79; 
organization of, 80; land busi- 
ness of, 81; money loaned by, 
81, 82; advice offered by, to 
English emigrants, 82, 83, 84, 
85, 86; advantages of, in buy- 
ing land and materials, 84, 85; 
commission charged by, 85, 86; 
farm pupils of, 85, 86, 141, 



142, 143, 144, 153; efforts of, 
to advertise Iowa, 87-93, 113, 
114, 168, 169 ; land managed by, 
105; reputation of, 106, 107; 
discussion as to effect of pro- 
hibitory amendment on, 110, 
111; warning of, concerning 
drunkenness, 111, 112; later 
history of, 113-119; land owned 
by, 116; Kansas Land Com- 
pany organized by, 117, 118; 
contribution of, to agriculture, 
120-128; improvements made by, 
123 ; trees planted by, 125, 126 ; 
success of, in securing tenants, 
126, 127; stewards employed by, 
128, 174; farming activities of, 
129-131, 174; criticism of, 143, 
144; entertainments by, 194, 
226, 227; horses owned by, 200; 
visits of, to Iowa, 230, 231; 
plans of, 256; names of, 258; 
syndicate represented by, 269; 
towns platted by, 291 (see also 
Close Brothers and Company) 
Close Brothers and Company, man- 
ager of, 12; loss of records of, 
12; decision of, to locate, 95; 
services of, 95; hotel purchased 
by, 96; praise given to, 97, 98; 
land owned by, 99; business of, 
99, 100; contract made with, 
100; change of name of, 102; 
taxes of, 107; formation of, 
114; western lands purchased 
by, 118; farm loan business 
done by, 118 ; irrigation pro- 
ject of, 118, 119; railroad built 
by, 119; managers of, 263; of- 
fices of, 263, 264, 267 (see also 
Close brothers) 



INDEX 



303 



Close colony, advice for new- 
comers to, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86; 
description of, 129-140; remain- 
ing members of, 247, 248 (see 
also English colony) 

Clowes, Mr., services of, on cricket 
team, 191 

Clowes, Harry, part of, in cricket 
game, 192 

Clowes, S., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Clowes, W., horse owned by, 200 

Clowes, W. L., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Coach horn, losing of, 188 

Coaching (see Tally-ho riding) 

Coal, supply of, in northwestern 
Iowa, 89; finding of, in Iowa, 
178-186 

Cobbe, Leuric Charles, soap fac- 
tory of, 175, 176; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 282 

Cobden, Frank C, stallion pur- 
chased by, 138; partnership 
with, 174; block built by, 222; 
return of, to England, 248 

Cobden Club, honorary secretary 
of, 139; president of, 166 

Cock fights, holding of, 187, 188 

Coke, E. G., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Cold weather, disadvantage of, 91 

Colebank, S., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, quota- 
tion from, 254, 255 

Colfax County (New Mexico), 
232 

Colledge, A. J., part of, in foot- 
ball game, 207; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 



Colledge, A. R., boat race with, 
202 

Colledge, Alfred Currie, farm of, 
137; interest of, in blooded 
stock, 137, 138; business in- 
terests of, 177; services of, on 
cricket team, 191; part of, in 
athletic meet, 201 ; boat race 
with, 202; return of, to Eng- 
land, 202, 203 ; part of, in polo 
match, 203, 204; part of, in 
football game, 205, 206, 207; 
part of, in "tug of war", 208; 
part of, in tennis tournament, 
208; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 222, 282; songs by, 231; 
western trip of, 232 ; residence 
of, 247 

Collins, J. Victor, membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Collins, L. H., part of, in athletic 
meet, 201 ; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Colony Sketch, The, establishment 
of, 217; features of, 217, 218 

Colony song, words of, 249-251 

Colorado, pioneer conditions in, 
88 ; irrigation project in, 118 

Colpoys, Adair G., acknowledg- 
ment to, 11, 277; business in 
charge of, 177; trip of, to Iowa, 
229; residence of, 247; Rugby 
colony visited by, 275, 276; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
282 

Colston, A, Vaughan, service of, 
as clergyman, 241, 242 ; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 282 

Colton, J. H., book published by, 
253 

"Columbus", sailing of, 28 



304 



INDEX 



Columbus City Township (Louisa 
County), Welsh in, 45 

Commercial Hotel, purchase of, 96 

Commission, charge of, by Close 
brothers, 85, 86 

Commission business, English en- 
gaged in, 174, 175 

Congress, bill concerning alien 
ownership of land introduced in, 
117 

Constitution of Iowa, prohibition 
amendment to, 109, 214, 215 

Cook and Sargent, arrangements 
with, 28 

Cooper, J. C, trip of, to England, 
230; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 282; letter from, 286 

Cope, Herbert, farms of, 137; tea 
business of, 175; newspapers do- 
nated by, 216; guest of, 229; 
trip of, to England, 230; resi- 
dence of, 247, 248 

Corbett, H. E., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Corkery, C. E., office of, 183 

Corn, amount of, raised in Iowa, 
39; burning of, for fuel, 70; 
growing of, 76 

Corn huskers, need of, 96 

Corn Laws, repeal of, 21 

Corncribs, building of, 123 

Cornhill Street, London, office of 
Wm. B. Close on, 77, 102 

Cornish, Miss, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Correctionville, English farm near, 
137 

Cotswold sheep, raising of, 132, 
133, 134 

Council Bluffs, Irish at, 42, 43; 
Canadians at, 46; Scotch at, 48; 



English at, 49; races at, 201; 
polo club at, 203 

Counties, Irish in, 42, 43; Welsh 
in, 44; Canadians in, 46; Bri- 
tish in, 289 

Courage, H. M., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Court, W. Roylance, Jr., Iowa 
recommended by, 92; farm of, 
131, 132; return of, to Eng- 
land, 248; reference to, 262 

Cow ponies, use of, in polo, 203 

Cowan, J. I., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Cowan, W. B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Crawford County, Irish in, 43; 
purchase of land in, by Close 
brothers, 59-62, 121; report of 
farm in, 66, 67; impossibility 
of buying land in, 68; land in, 
105; sheep raising in, 133; 
value of land in, 264 

Crawley, Mr., absence of, from 
game, 205 

Crawley, E. M., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Crayon, Christopher, article by, 
255 

Crescent Park (Sioux City), polo 
played at, 203, 204 

Cricket, interest in, 146, 190, 191, 
192, 193, 194, 202, 208, 209 

Cricket Club, organization of, 
190; equipment stolen from, 193 

Croft, Mr., services of, in cricket 
game, 193, 209 

Croft, G. B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Cromwell, Oliver, town named for 
son-in-law of, 290 



INDEX 



305 



Crops, division of, 65, 76 

Cumberhatch, L. T., membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 282 

Cunningham, Herbert Noel, mem- 
orial address by, 234; service 
of, as clergyman, 238, ',239; 
school of, 239, 240; marriage 
of, 240; church paper published 
by, 241; resignation of, 241; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
282; letter from, 286; mention 
of, 287 

Curtis, Mr., farm of, 181 

Dacres, Charles E., part of, in 
paper chase, 188; comment by, 
214, 215 ; advice of, 217 ; papers 
edited by, 217, 218, 219, 220; 
arrest of, 219; career of, 219, 
220; place of, in Prairie Min- 
strels, 223, 224; death of 
father of, 235; reply to, 281; 
death of, 281; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Dacres, Mrs. Charles E., mention 
of, 219, 220 

Dacres, Sir Sidney Colpoys, son 
of, 166; death of, 235 

Dairying, products of, 39 ; in- 
terest of English settlers in, 
135, 136 

Dakota, proposed removal of 
British to, 246 (see also North 
Dakota and South Dakota) 

Dalrymple, Oliver, farming plan 
of, 64, 65, 105 

Dalrymple, William, father of, 259 

Dalton, Ed, acknowledgment to, 
11, 277, 280, 288; part of, 
in polo match, 204 



Dalton, H. J. M., trip of, to Eng- 
land, 230 

Dalton, Herbert, death of, 234; 
funeral of, 286 

Dalton, P. !F., presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Dalton, Mrs, P. F., presence of, 
at dance, 227 

Dalton, bank at, 176 

Dances, holding of, 226, 227 

Danes, migration of, 7, 52 

Davenport, need of skilled labor 
at, 26; arrival at, 28; road to, 
29; Irish at, 42; Canadians at, 
46; Scotch at, 48; English at, 
49 

Davenport district court, decision 
of, on prohibitory amendment, 
214, 215 

Davidson, Mr., part of, in cricket 
game, 191, 192 

Davis, Miss, presence of, at dance, 
227 

Dawson, J., boat race with, 202 

Dawson, S. B. M., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 282 

Dawson, W. B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Deakin, Howard F., law practice 
of, 176 

Dealtry, Tom H., business of, 
177; services of, on cricket 
team, 191, 193; share of, in or- 
ganization of the Prairie Club, 
222, 282; residence of, 247 
Deaths, account of, at English 

colony, 234, 235 
Deeds, recording of, 83 
Deer, hunting of, 89 
Delaware County, Irish in, 43; 



306 



INDEX 



Canadians in, 46; English in, 
50; British in, 257 
Democratic party, affiliation of 

English with, 216 
De Moleyns, E., farm of, 146; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 
De Mores, Marquis, amount of 

land owned by, 116 
Dempsey, Basil, suicide of, 235; 

reference to, 262 
Denisou, residence of Close broth- 
ers at, 63 
Dent, Lady, son of, 137 
Dent, Alfred Robert Tighe, bank 
building of, 95; farm of, 137; 
part of, in tennis tournament, 
208; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 222, 282; marriage of, 
233; residence of, 248 
Dent, W. H., invitation of, to 

dance, 227 
Dent, Mrs. W. H., presence of, at 

dance, 227 
Denton-Cardew, W. P., trip in 

charge of, 232 
De Paullins, mention of family 

of, 258 
De Pledge, Aimee, marriage of, 

to M. J. Chapman, 232 
De Pledge, H. Grey, Iowa rec- 
ommended by, 92; western trip 
of, 232; reference to, 262; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 
Derby, holding of, 194, 199, 207, 

208, 209 
Des Moines, Irish at, 42, 43; 
Welsh at, 45; Canadians at, 46; 
Scotch at, 48; English at, 49; 
Close brothers at, 59 



Des Moines County, Irish in, 43; 

English in, 50 
Des Moines Township (Mahaska 

County), Welsh in, 45 
Des Moines Valley, coal in, 179 
Desmoulins, Mr., presence of, at 

picnic, 228 
De Witt, land purchased near, 29 
Dickinson County, purchase of 

land in, 116 
Dinwoodie, Mr., part of, in cricket 

game, 192 
Doctors, number of, in Iowa, 89 
Dodsworth, P. C. S., part of, in 
paper chase, 188; horse ridden 
by, 199; trip of, to England, 
230; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 282 
Dodsworth, M. B., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 222, 282 
Dorset (England), clergyman from, 

237 
Douglass, James, services of, on 
cricket team, 191 ; part of, in 
tennis tournament, 208; place 
of, in Prairie Minstrels, 223 ; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
282 
Dowglass, Andrew, marriage of, 

233 
Dowglass, Tom, part of, in "tug 
of war", 208; trip of, to Eng- 
land, 230; burial place of, 248; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 
Downing, G. C, membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 282 
Downs, sheep raising on, 89 
Drake, E. P., invitation of, 100 
Drake, Henry H., acknowledg- 
ment to, 13, 277, 278, 280, 288 ; 



INDEX 



307 



business of, 177; part of, in 
polo match, 203, 204; part of, 
in cricket match, 209; residence 
of, 247; college of, 273; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 282; 
marriage of, 288 

Drill, description of, 181 

Dromore Farm, description of, 
132, 133; coal discovered on, 
180, 181, 182, 185; first meet- 
ing of Prairie Club at, 222 

Dublin University, graduate from, 
243 

Dubuque, need of skilled labor at, 
26; stage route to, 28, 29; 
Irish dissatisfaction expressed 
through diocese of, 34, 35; Irish 
at, 42; Canadians at, 46; Scotch 
at, 48; English at, 49; English 
colony described in newspaper 
of, 164-166; death of Daniel 
Paullin at, 285 

Dubuque County, Irish in, 43; 
Canadians in, 46; Scotch in, 48; 
English in, 50; British in, 257 

Dubuque Emigrant Association, in- 
fluence of, 33 

Ducie, Earl of, death of, 274 

Ducie, Lord, brother of, 139, 140, 
146, 148, 166, 179 

Ducks, shooting of, 89 

Duff, W. G., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Dumbartonshire (Scotland), im- 
migrant from, 136 

Dun, Finlay, et al, land owned 
by, 116 

Duncan, C. M., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 282 

Dundas, S., part of, in "tug of 
war", 208 



Dundee (Scotland), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 

Dunlop, K. D., partnership of, in 
Iowa Land Company, 115 

Dunmore, Earl of, mention of, 229 

Dunmore, Lord, land owned by, 
268 

Dunn, P. J., letter of, relative to 
jubilee, 280 

Dunraven, Lord, land owned by, 
268 

Dunwaters, A. G., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Dunwaters, Alexander W., death 
of, 235 

Dutch, presence of, in Iowa, 17, 
257; representation of, on im- 
migration board, 34; farms 
rented by, 127, 128; effects of 
settlements of, 252; immigra- 
tion of, 272 (see also Holland- 
ers) 

Dykema, Harry, sketch of life of, 
271, 272 

Dykema, Mello, sketch of life of, 
271, 272 

East Orange (see Alton) 
Eccles, Mr,, absence of, from din- 
ner, 225 
Eccles, C. H., place of, in Prairie 

Minstrels, 223; membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Eccles, P. C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Eden, Mr., horse ridden by, in 

race, 199 
Eden Township (Clinton County), 

people in, 30 
Edgecomb, William, marriage of, 

233 



308 



INDEX 



Edgell, W. F,, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Edginton, Edward T., appoint- 
ment of, on commission, 34 ; 
work of, in Liverpool, 35, 36; 
report of, to legislature, 36, 37; 
salary of, 37 

Edinburgh (Scotland), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Edinburgh Scotsman, libel suit 
against, 153, 154 

Edinburgh University, graduate 
of, 176 

Editor, attempt to horse whip, 
211, 212, 213 

Edsell, W., arrival of, in Iowa, 
161 

Education, provision for, in north- 
western Iowa, 89 

Elections, English comment on, 
215, 216 

Elkhorn Township (Plymouth 
County), purchase of land in, 
by Close brothers, 68; farm in, 
285 

EUer, Messrs., farm of, 146 

Eller, Charles, soap factory of, 
175, 176; horse owned by, 197; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
222, 283; trip of, to England, 
230; western trip of, 232 

Eller, Harry, part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 ; burial place 
of, 248 ; reference to, 262 ; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Eller, J., reference to, 262; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Ellerhauser, M., land owned by, 

269 
Elliott, F. N., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 



Elliott, Guy P., part of, in "tug 
of war", 208; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Elliott, N. L., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Elm Grove Township (Louisa 
County), Welsh in, 45 

Elsham, description of, 138 

Emery, Colonel, address by, 224- 
226 

Emigrant societies, forming of, 
20, 28 

Emigrant trains, cost of travel by, 
78 

Emigrants, guides for, 19, 77, 78, 
79, 82-93; equipment of, 20, 21; 
errors made by, 21; disappoint- 
ment of, 22 ; number of, in 
Iowa, 32 ; destination of, 33 ; 
interest of, in Iowa, 36, 37 

Emigration, reasons for, 8; books 
on, 18, 19, 23, 24, 36, 37; need 
of, in England, 24, 25 

England, emigration from, 24, 25, 
94, 95, 96, 265; literature on 
Iowa distributed in, 34, 87-93; 
lack of opportunities in, 74, 75, 
76, 77, 158-160; trip of Wm. 
B. Close to, 77; exchange with, 
81 ; payment of commission in, 
85; downs of, 89; advertise- 
ments in, of agricultural 
schemes, 90; money borrowed 
in, 118; price of wool in, 134; 
Le Mars newspaper sent to, 
163; visit of colonists to, 228, 
230; return of colonists to, 246, 
247, 248, 249 

English, number of, in Iowa, 32, 
48-53, 148, 149, 165, 166, 167, 
168, 289, 290; headquarters for, 



INDEX 



309 



69, 72-76; investment of, in 
Iowa land, 69, 74, 75, 82, 115- 
119, 131; capital needed by, 
79, 80; interest of, in sheep 
raising, 88, 89; farming meth- 
ods of, 90; Iowa recommended 
by, 92, 93 ; character of, 94, 95 ; 
description of, at Le Mars, 94, 
95, 96, 161-166; political status 
of, 109, 110, 216, 246; opinion 
of, concerning prohibition, 109- 
112, 214, 215; drinking among, 
112; sports of, 115; debts left 
by, 115; immigration of, to 
Iowa, 129-140; description of 
farms of, 144-147; advertise- 
ments of, for farm pupils, 147- 
151; social standards of, 166, 
221; relations of, with Ameri- 
cans, 171, 213, 214, 215-220; 
business interests of, in Iowa, 
174-177; saloons for, 210-215; 
political affiliations of, 216; club 
for, 222, 223, 224, 225; wed- 
dings among, 232-234; deaths 
among, 234, 235; titles of, 236, 
248, 249; church life among, 
237-244; disappearance of, from 
northwestern Iowa, 245-252 ; 
burial places of, 248; names de- 
rived from, 252 
English colony, plans for, 77, 79, 
81 ; requirements for, 85 ; de- 
scription of, 129-140; farm 
pupils in, 141-156; fame of, 
161-173; social life at, 221-236; 
number in, 232; song of, 249- 
251 (see also Close colony) 
English flag, raising of, 2ld 
English Jockey Club, meetings of, 
200 



English Land Company, land 

owned by, 268 
English papers, description of, 216 
English syndicate, land owned by, 

268, 269 
Episcopal Church, activities of, in 

Iowa, 237-244 
Epsom Derby, winner of, 198 
Estherville, mission church at, 244 
Euclid, book of, mention of, 182 
Europe, migrations in, 7 
Eustace, Mr., part of, in cricket 

match, 209 
Eustace, J. S., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Ewen, Mr., presence of, at picnic, 

228 
Exchange, business of, 80, 81 
Exeter College (Oxford), gradu- 
ates of, 273 
Eykyn, F. B., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 

Fairbaien, F. E., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Falmouth, Lord, horse raised by, 

194 
Farm buildings, value of, 269 
Farm machinery, value of, 269 
Farm property, value of, 269 
Farm pupils (see Pupils, farm) 
Farmers, carelessness of, 65; pro- 
fits of, 70; capital needed by, 
79, 80; newcomers taught by, 
83, 84, 85, 86; advertisements 
sent to, 90 ; comments by, on 
Iowa soil, 93; associations of, 
172 
Farming, plan of Close brothers 
for, 63-67; description of, in 
Iowa, 75-86; methods of, 90; 



310 



INDEX 



apprentices in, 141-156; interest 
of English in, 174 

Farming in North-Western loiva, 
distribution of, 77; information 
in, 77, 78 

Farms, renting of, 64; money 
loaned on, 82, 118; number of, 
for rent, 126, 127; names of, 
133, 136, 137; photographs of, 
148 ; advertisements of, 147-151 ; 
terms of selling, 246 

Farquhar, Admiral, sons of, 166; 
visits of, to Iowa, 229 

Farquhar, Mr., part of, in cricket 
game, 191, 192 ; horse owned 
by, 198; part of, in football 
game, 205; presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Farquhar, Albert, part of, in ten- 
nis tournament, 208; part of, in 
''tug of war", 208; part of, in 
cricket match, 209 ; mention of, 
229 ; return of, to England, 248 ; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 

Farquhar, Charles, mention of, 
229 ; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 283 

Farquhar, J., part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 

Farquhar, James, mention of, 229; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 

Farquhar, Joseph, part of, in ten- 
nis tournament, 208 ; mention 
of, 229 ; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Farquhar, Mowbray, arrival of, in 
Iowa, 161 ; part of, in athletic 
meet, 201; mention of, 229; 
service of, in Canadian Mounted 



Police, 248; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Farquhar, William R., coming of, 
to Iowa, 143; part of, in ten- 
nis tournament, 208; mention 
of, 229; residence of, 248; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283 

Fayette County, Irish in, 43; 
Canadians in, 46 ; English in, 
50; British in, 257 

Fenton, James, farm of, 136; in- 
terest of, in blooded stock, 137, 
138 ; mention of, 148 ; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Fenton, Mrs. James, butter sold 
by, 135, 136 

Fenton, James S., letter from, 286 

Fenton, K. O., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Ferris, A. B., office of, as man- 
ager, 183 

Ffoulkes, S. W., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Field tourney, holding of, 201 

Figgis, W. W., part of, in foot- 
ball game, 207; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Fight, description of, 213, 214 

First National Bank (St. Paul), 
check paid to, 104 

Flax, raising of, 124 

Flax mill, need of, 149 

Florence (Kansas), visit of Eng- 
lish to, 231 

Florida, land owned in, by aliens, 
268, 269 

Flowers, C. A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Floyd County, Canadians in, 46 

Floyd Farm, sale of, 136 



INDEX 



311 



Floyd meat market, sale of, 175 
Floyd River, valley of, 179 
Floyd sale yard, owner of, 175 
Food, description of, 145, 170 
Football, playing of, 204, 205, 

206, 207 
Forest City, "Welsh at, 45 
Fort Dodge, Canadians at, 46 
Fort Madison, need of skilled 

labor at, 26 
Fourth of July, celebration of, 

215 
Fowler, Mary, marriage of, to 

William Edgecomb, 233 
Fox hunting, opportunities for, 

140 
"Foxhall", race won by, 198 
France, Le Mars newspaper sent 

to, 163 
"Fred Wilson", prize won by, 

197 
Freight rates, 70, 71 
French, immigration of, 10; pres- 
ence of, in Iowa, 17; desirabil- 
ity of, 95 
Frost, Mr., business interests of, 

175 
Fuel, use of corn as, 70; supply 

of, in northwestern Iowa, 89, 

178, 179 
Fullbrook, E. A., arrival of, in 

Iowa, 161; residence of, 247"; 

membership of, in Prairie Club, 

283 
Fullbrook, R., arrival of, in Iowa, 

161 ; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 283 
Fulton, A. R., pamphlet by, 34 

Games, kinds of, introduced by 
English, 187-209 



Gardner (Massachusetts), removal 
of H. N. Cunningham to, 241 

Garfield, James A., English me- 
morial service for, 234 

Garfield, Mrs. James A., letter to, 
286 

Garfield Township (Mahaska 
County), Welsh in, 45 

Garfield Township (Plymouth 
County), purchase of land in, 
by Closes, 120, 121 

Garnett, Mr., absence of, from 
game, 205; banner accepted by, 
225 

Garnett, Gerald, farm of, 137; 
services of, on cricket commit- 
tee, 190; return of, to England, 
248 ; reference to, 262 ; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Garnett, Henry, Iowa recommend- , 
ed by, 92 

Garrickdale Farm, 137 

Gaskell, Mr., part of, in paper 
chase, 188, 189; presence of, at 
picnic, 228 

Gaskell, S. W., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Gaskell, Willie, horse ridden by, 
198; part of, in polo match, 
208; reference to, 262 

"Gateway", 169 

Gateway team, cricket game with, 
191, 192, 193, 205, 206, 207 

Gear, John H., attitude of, toward 
immigration, 37, 38 

Gee, Arthur, advantages of Iowa 
recognized by, 92; farm of, 
137; share of, in Prairie Club, 
222, 283; removal of, from 
Iowa, 246, 247 

Geese, shooting of, 89 



312 



INDEX 



Genealogy, interest in, 9 

General Assembly, adoption of 
prohibitory amendment by, 109 

Geoffrey, R., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

German syndicate, land owned by, 
268 

Germans, presence of, in Iowa, 
17, 32, 52 ; representation of, 
on immigration board, 34; de- 
sirability of, 53, 95, 112; des- 
cription of, 165 

Germany, emigrants from, 7; re- 
port of American consul at, 
relative to immigration, 38; Le 
Mars newspaper sent to, 163; 
death of F. E. Eomanes in, 248 

Gibson, A. B. C, membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Gilbert and Sullivan, play by, 241 

Gillespie, James C, acknowledg- 
ment to, 11, 12 

Gilman Township (Osceola Coun- 
ty), houses in, 123 

Gilmore, William G., membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Gladstone, W., steamship agency 
of, 175; money won by, 200 

Gladstone, William E., death of, 
235; town named for home of, 
290 

Glasgow (Scotland), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 

Glohe, The (Le Mars), editor of, 
219, 220 

Gloucester (England), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Goewey, Miss, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Goewey Township (Osceola Coun- 
ty), houses in, 123 



Golightly, C. H., part of, in 
cricket game, 192 ; part of, in 
athletic meet, 201 ; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Goths, migration of, 7 

Grace Church (Le Mars), wedding 
at, 233; services at, 237, 239; 
new building for, 240 

Graham, Robert G. Maxtone, pur- 
chase of land by, 71, 95; Iowa 
recommended by, 92; part of, 
in cricket match, 209 ; reference 
to, 262 ; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Grain, cost of transportation of, 
70, 71 ; capital needed for rais- 
ing of, 79, 80 

Granaries, building of, 123 

Grand International Hurdle Race, 
holding of, 200 

Grand stand, erection of, for 
races, 194 

Grant, George, land owned by, 
268 

Grant, U. S., memorial service for, 
241 

Granville, Richard, town named 
for, 290 

Granville, origin of name of, 252 

Grasshoppers, effect of, on north- 
western Iowa, 68, 69, 73, 74, 91, 
120, 224 

Graves, Samuel Houghton, firm 
joined by, 267; marriage of, 
286 

Grayson, J. H., bricks made by, 
175; horse owned by, 197; place 
of, in Prairie Minstrels, 223; 
presence of, at picnic, 228; trip 
of, to England, 230; burial 
place of, 248 ; reference to, 262 ; 



INDEX 



313 



membership of, in Prairie Club, 
283; letter from, 286 

Grazing, opportunities for, 135, 
150 

Great Britain, immigrants from, 
23, 38, 151; knowledge of 
Le Mars in, 168, 169 (see also 
England) 

Greene County, Irish in, 43; 
Scotch in, 48; English in, 50; 
British in, 257 

Grenville (see Granville) 

Grey, Algernon, part of, in foot- 
ball game, 206, 207; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Grotkin, Mr., farm of, 181 

Grouse, Mr., services of, on 
cricket team, 191 ; horse owned 
by, 197; presence of, at picnic, 
228 

Grouse, Eobert, partnership with, 
175; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 283 

Grouse, W., return of, to England, 
246 

Groves, need of, 125 

Grundy, John S., death of, 234 

Grundy County, Canadians in, 46 

Guinness, C, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Gunner, H. D., horse owned by, 
200; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 283 

Gypsy Hill Farm, 137 

Hackett and Hynes, farm of, 
181 

Hail Columbia Stakes, calling of, 
197, 198 

Hamburg Steamship Line, litera- 
ture disseminated by, 34 



Hamburgh-London market, sheep 

for, 133 
Hanbury, H., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Hanson, S. G., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Harboard, R. A., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Harmon, W. D., song composed 

by, 288 
Harper, A. E., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Harris, Lady, visit of, to Iowa, 

229 
Harris, Lord, mention of, 146; 

visit of, to Iowa, 191, 229 
Harrison, R. W., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Harrison Township (Mahaska 

County), Welsh in, 45 
Harvard University, PauUin boys 

in, 61 
Harvey, I. A., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Hathaway, H. P., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Hawarden, English farm near, 

137; mission church at, 243; 

burial at, 248; origin of name 

of, 252, 290 
Hawks Nest, visitors to, 229 
Hawtrey, G., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Hawtrey, H., part of, in "tug of 

war", 208 
Heap, S., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Heeb, J. F., office of, 183 
Heitland, A. R., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Heitland, Percy, reference to, 262 



314 



INDEX 



Henley (England), rowing club 
at, 202, 203 

Henslow, G. G., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Henry Township (Plymouth Coun- 
ty), farm in, 136 

"Herd law", advantage of, 135 

Hereford (England), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Hereford cattle, raising of, 136 

Hewett, C, part of, in football 
game, 206, 207 

Hewett, D., place of, in Prairie 
Minstrels, 224 

Hibernians, mention of, 164 (see 
also Irish) 

Hiero, crown of, 183 

Higgins, J. E., church services 
conducted by, 241 

Hill, E. T., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Hill, R. G., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Hillyard, Harry, farm of, 137; 
services of, on cricket commit- 
tee, 190; trip of, to England, 
230 ; return of, to England, 248 ; 
reference to, 263; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Hilton Township (Iowa County), 
Welsh in, 45 

Hirst, Mr., presence of, at picnic, 
228 

Hirst, Mrs., presence of, at picnic, 
228 

Hobart, Lord, interest of, in 
blooded stock, 137, 138; work 
of, 145; coming of, to Iowa, 
166; boat race with, 202; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 222, 



283 ; departure of, from Iowa, 
230; sister of, 248; title of, 248 

Hogs, raising of, 39, 132, 133, 
136; packing plant for, 175 

Hollanders, farms rented by, 127, 
128; description of, 164, 165; 
effects of settlements of, 252 
(see also Dutch) 

Holman Township (Osceola Coun- 
ty), houses in, 123 

Holstein, farmers from, 133 

"Home Minstrels", success of, 
224 

Homesteads, purchasing of, 97 

Hoopes, J. W., mineral rights 
leased by, 181 

Hope, J., part of, in athletic meet, 
201 

Hope, J. G., part of, in football 
game, 207; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Hopkinson, John, appointment of, 
as steward, 128, 174; commis- 
sion business of, 174; visit of, 
to England, 228; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Hornby, Sir Edward, son of, 234 

Hornby, Hugh, death of, 234; 
funeral of, 286 

Horsburgh, Fred, interest of, in 
cricket, 190, 191, 192; place of, 
in Prairie Minstrels, 224; trip 
of, to England, 230; reference 
to, 262; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Horse racing, interest of English 
in, 138, 139, 193-201 

Horses, training of, 194 

Hospers, Henry, immigration en- 
couraged by, 272 



INDEX 



315 



Hot Springs (Arkansas), mention 
of, 175 

Hotel, erection of, 113 

Hotham, Geo., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Houghton, Lord, land owned by, 
268 

"House of Commons", naming 
of, 210 

"House of Lords", cup offered 
by, 200; naming of, 210; criti- 
cism of, 210, 211, 213, 215; 
patronage of, 213 

Houses, description of, 63, 122; 
cost of, 63, 66, Si, 85; building 
of, 65, 66, 113, 121, 122, 123, 
130 

Howard, Lady, visit of, to Iowa, 
229 

Howard, Reverend, mention of, 
287 

Howard, F. G., purchase of land 
by, 239 

Howard County, Irish in, 43; 
Welsh in, 44, 45 

Hughes, Mrs., coming of, to Ten- 
nessee, 275, 276 

Hughes, Thomas, book by, 157; 
colony founded by, 157-160, 
275, 276 

Huguenots, mention of, 258 

Hulbert, W. G., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Humble, Mr., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Humble, Mrs., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Humble, Margaret, marriage of, 
to Frederick B. Close, 167, 189, 
233, 234 

Huns, migration of, 7 



Hunting, opportunities for, 140, 

148, 171, 189 
Hurds, dinner at, 192 
Hurle, J. C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Hyde, E., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 

Ice hockey, playing of, 201, 202 

Illinois, immigrants from, 17, 106; 
description of, 19 ; advantages 
of settlers in, 27, 28; Wm. B. 
Close in, 61 ; advertising matter 
distributed in, 114 ; coal from, 
179 ; rank of, as farming State, 
269 

Illinois Central Railroad, coming 
of, to Iowa, 72, 73 ; relations of 
Close Brothers with, 100 

Immigrants, ancestry of, 17; ar- 
rival of, at Le Mars, 94, 95, 
96; efforts of Close Brothers to 
secure, 113, 114 ; description of, 
161-163; return of, 246, 247; 
desirability of, 265 ; equipment 
of, 276 

Immigration, State encouragement 
of, 32-41; coming of, to north- 
western Iowa, 73, 129-140; in- 
crease of, 82 ; effect of pro- 
hibition on, 214 

Immigration, Commissioner of, 
provision for, 33 ; salary of, 38 

Immigration, Iowa State Board of, 
creation of, 33 ; publicity of, 
33, 34, 37; number of foreign- 
ers on, 34, .35; financial status 
of, 36 

Inchinnoch, 136 

Indian CreeTc Gasette, The, estab- 
lishment of, 217 



316 



INDEX 



Indiana, immigrants from, 17 

Indians, home of, 10; part of, in 
Iowa history, 10; absence of, 
from Iowa, 87 

Insurance, English engaged in, 
174, 175 

International Dairy Fair (New 
York), award made at, 39 

International scurry, holding of, 
198, 199 

Inverness (Scotland), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Iowa, inquiries of citizens of, 8, 
9; immigration to, 9, 10, 18, 73, 
129-140; history of, 10; point- 
ing the way to, 17-31; descrip- 
tions of, 19, 20, 23, 27, 28, 77- 
86; need of emigrants in, 26; 
advantages of settlers in, 27, 
28; population of, 32; official 
encouragement of immigration 
to, 32-41 ; resources of, 39, 75, 
76, 126, 127, 130, 131, 135, 178- 
186; products of, 39, 87, 88; 
emigration from, 47; coming of 
Close brothers to, 58, 59, 61, 62 ; 
purchase of land in, by Close 
brothers, 59-62, 68-71 ; farming 
in, 63-67, 90; corn raising in, 
76; price of land in, 81, 82; 
investments of English in, 82, 
92, 93, 115, 116; publicity for, 
in England, 87-93; people of, 
87, 88; life in, 87, 88, 148, 169, 
170; railroads in, 88; phj^sical 
geography of, 88 ; sheep raising 
in, 88, 89 ; fuel in, 89 ; climate 
of, 91, 170; disadvantages of, 
91, 157; advertising matter dis- 
tributed in, 114; visits of Eng- 
lish to, 235; disappearance of 



English from, 245-252; land 
owned in, by aliens, 269; rank 
of, as farming State, 269; 
statistics concerning British in, 
289 

Iowa, Sketches of, or the Emir 
grants' Guide, publication of, 
253 

Iowa City, need of skilled labor 
in, 26 

Iowa County, Irish in, 43; Welsh 
in, 44, 45 

Iowa diocese, bishop of, 237 

Iowa Falls, railroad to, 72 

Iowa Land Company, formation 
of, 99-108; resources of, 104, 
105; management of, 105, 106, 
263; land owned by, 106, 265; 
taxes of, 107; capital of, 108; 
activities of, in Iowa, 113 ; move 
of, to Minnesota, 113, 114, 115, 
116; withdrawal of Close bro- 
thers from, 114; business of, 
115; partners in, 115 

Iowa Besources and Industries, 
publication of, 40 

Ireland, mention of, 34, 163 ; im- 
migrants from, 265; conditions 
in, 280 

Ireton, Henry, town named for, 
290 

Ireton, erection of brick block in, 
113; English farm near, 137; 
origin of name of, 252, 290 

Irish, number of, in Iowa, 17, 32, 
42-44, 51, 52, 289, 290; dis- 
satisfaction of, 34, 35; agent to 
be appointed by, 35; cause for 
emigration of, 42; desirability 
of, 95 

"Iroquois", race won by, 198 



INDEX 



317 



Irrigation, activities of Close 

Brothers in, 118, 119 
Italians, number of, resident in 

Iowa, 257 

Jackson County, Irish in, '43; 
Canadians in, 46 

Jacob, Edgar, sermon by, 239 

Jameson, S. B., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Japan, tea from, 175 

Jasper County, Welsh in, 44, 45 ; 
Scotch in, 48 ; English in, 50 ; 
British in, 257 

Jennings, F. S., part of, in. ath- 
letic meet, 201 

Jervis, Mr., services of, on cricket 
team, 191, 192, 193 

Jervis, C. L., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Jervis, Ronald C, farm of, 136; 
horse owned by, 201 ; race won 
by, 202; title of, 248; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Jervis brothers, 229 

Johnson, D. G., services of, on 
cricket team, 191 ; part of, in 
*'tug of war", 208; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Johnson County, Irish in, 43; 
Welsh in, 44, 45; English in, 
50; British in, 257 

Johnston, AVilliam, land owned by, 
116 

Joliet (Illinois), English resident 
of, 248 

Jones, A. B., buck killed by, 189 

Jones County, Irish in, 43; Cana- 
dians in, 46 

Joshua, mention of, 172 

June Derby, popularity of, 199 



Kansas, trip of Close brothers to, 
61; com in, 76; pioneer con- 
ditions in, 88; Close brothers' 
investments in, 118; visit of S. 
Nugent Townshend to, 144 ; visit 
of Iowa English to, 231 

Kansas Land Company, formation 
of, 117, 118 

Kay, Charles, farm of, 137; 
marriage of, 233; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Kay, R. P., departure of, from 
Iowa, 93 

Kaye, John Lester, land o-mied 
by, 268 

Kennard, R. B., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Kennedy, J. C, horse owned by, 
197, 198 

Kentucky, immigrants from, 17 

Keokuk, settlement at, 10; Irish 
at, 42 

Keokuk County, Scotch in, 48; 
English in, 50 

Kernan, Will H., account of pupil 
system written by, 275 

Killingham (England), character 
of people from, 30 

King, Alexander, work of, on com- 
mission, 34 

King, E. W. G., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

King Street, Manchester, office of 
Wm. B. Close on, 77 

Kingsley, platting of, 101 ; pur- 
chase of land at, by Closes, 121 ; 
bank at, 176; mission church 
at, 243, 244; English residents 
at, 247 

Kirkbride, B. R., church services 
conducted by, 241 



318 



INDEX 



Kirkville, Welsh in, 45 

Kirwan, G., services of, on cricket 

team, 191 ; membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Kirwan, L. Maitland, membership 

of, in Prairie Club, 283 
"Kitchen Maid", prize won by, 

197, 198, 199 
Knowsley, 138 

Iaborers, need for, 26, 96, 128; 
pay of, 131 

Lacrosse, playing of, 201 

"Lady Grace", prize won by, 197 

Laing, Captain, races held at home 
of, 194 

Lake, William, interest of, in im- 
migration, 30, 31 

Lake Como (Italy), return of 
Charles Mylius to, 176 

Lamar (Colorado), irrigation pro- 
ject at, 118 

Land, purchase of, 21, 29, 40, 41, 
68-71, 99, 100, 101, 102, 104, 
259, 268, 269; speculation in, 
66, 73, 74; price of, 66, 68, 73, 
74, 81, 82, 97, 179, 182, 264, 
269; profits on, 77; titles to, 
83; improvement of, 98; a- 
mount of, owned by English, 
115-119 

Land and Water, letters fromWm. 
B. Close in, 75 

Land companies, efforts of, to dis- 
pose of land, 40, 41 

Lane, Chas., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Langar, 138 

Langdon, G. H., horse owned by, 
198; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 283 



Langley, A., farm of, 137; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Larchwood, land bought near, 101 ; 
Sykes estate at, 175; mission 
church at, 243, 244 

Lascalles, A. G., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Latham, Eichard M., position of, 
on newspaper, 177; residence of, 
247 

Lee County, Irish in, 43 

Leeds (England), printer of, 24; 
literature distributed in, 36 

Legislature (Iowa), provision of, 
for Commissioner of Immigra- 
tion, 33 ; Iowa State Board of 
Immigration created by, 33, 34 ; 
need of publicity presented to, 
36, 37 ; appropriation of, for 
encouragement of immigration, 
38 

Lehmann, Rudolph C, visit of, to 
Iowa, 92, 93 

Leicester (England), literature 
distributed in, 36 

Leicester sheep, raising of, 132 

Leicestershire (England), mention 
of, 291 

Leidy, C. F., criticism of, 212, 213 

Le Mars, Canadians at, 46; Eng- 
lish at, 49 ; comment by editor 
of, on land purchases by Close 
brothers, 69, 96, 121, 122, 126, 
127; headquarters for English 
colonists at, 69, 72-76; location 
of, 72, 73; fare from England 
to, 78 ; reception of English 
colonists at, 83, 94-98; office of 
Close brothers at, 102, 113, 114, 
116, 163; feeling at, concerning 
prohibition, 109, 110, 111, 214, 



INDEX 



319 



215; activities of Close brothers 
at, 129-131 ; description of col- 
ony at, 129-140, 144-147, 161- 
173 ; cattle auction at, 139 ; 
farm pupils at, 141-156; visit 
of S. Nugent Townshend to, 
144, 145, 146, 147; interest of 
English at, in Rugby colony, 
158-160; fame of English col- 
ony at, 161-173; scenes at rail- 
road station at, 161-166 ; growth 
of, 165, 166; cartoon concern- 
ing, 172, 173 ; erection of brick 
block in, 174; bank at, 176; 
coal mines at, 181, 184; Manu- 
facturers' Union at, 185; games 
at, 189, 190, 191, 192, 193; 
cricket team of, 190, 191, 193; 
horse races at, 195, 196, 197, 
198, 199; hockey team of, 202; 
polo at, 203, 208; saloons at, 
210-215; disorders in, 210, 211, 
212, 217, 218; English papers 
at, 216; English news in news- 
papers of, 216, 217; attempts to 
burn, 219; concerts at, 224; 
social events at, 224, 225, 226, 
227, 241; g-uests from, 227, 233; 
visits of Close brothers to, 231 ; 
trip of delegation from, 231, 
232; English residents of, 247, 
290; population of, 260; Bri- 
tish in, 290 

Le Mars Athletic Club, formation 
of, 201 

Le Mars Club, football game with, 
204 

Le Mars colony, interest in, 275 
(see also English colony and 
Close colony) 

Le Mars cup race, holding of, 198 



Le Mars Derby, popularity of, 
194, 199 

Le Mars Dramatic Club, program 
by, 224 

Le Mars Jockey Club, organiza- 
tion of, 193; meeting of, 201; 
mention of, 208; races by, 227 

Le Mars Land and Stock Feed- 
ing Company, business of, 176 

Le Mars Lawn Tennis Club, plans 
of, 202; organization of, 280 

Le Mars Pork Packing House, 
English owners of, 175 

Le Mars races, social affairs of, 
227 

Le Mars Sentinel, The, publisher 
of, 11; article reprinted in, 168 
(see also Sentinel, The) 

Lemars Truth, The, comment in, 
on liberty at Le Mars, 214, 215 ; 
change of name to, 218; discon- 
tinuance of, 219 

Lemars World, The, editor of, 219 

"Lena", prize won by, 198 

Lewis, John Llewellyn, birthplace 
of, 45 

Leycester, L., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Liberal (Le Mars), comments in, 
on disorders at Le Mars, 211, 
212 

Lincoln (England), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 

Lincoln Township (Montgomery 
County), Welsh in, 45 

Lincolnshire (England), mention 
of, 172 

Linn County, Irish in, 43; Cana- 
dians in, 46; Scotch in, 48; 
English in, 50 ; British in, 257 

Literature, amount of, 36, 37 



320 



INDEX 



' ' Little Harry ' ', prize wou by, 
198 

Little Sioux River, English farms 
near, 131, 132; game on, 189 

Littledale, E., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Live stock, amount of, in Iowa, 
39 ; amount of, in Canada, 39 ; 
value of, 269 

Liverpool (England), emigration 
from, 18, 19, 28; literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 ; fare from, 78 ; 
return of J. D. Aubertin to, 246 

Lockhart, General, son of, 235 

Lockhart, Walter C, death of, 
235; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 283 

Logan, Mr., part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 ; part of, in 
cricket match, 209 

London (England), emigration ad- 
vocated at, 18, 19; mention of, 
34; literature distributed in, 
36 ; letters in newspaper of, 75 ; 
office of Wm, B. Close in, 77, 
104, 163 ; business relations of 
Close brothers in, 80, 81; libel 
case at, 153, 154; representative 
of, 166; article in newspaper 
of, on English colony, 171, 172 ; 
revival services in, 242 

London Field, correspondent of, 
232 

London Times, subscriptions for, 
216; comment on, 216; pro- 
prietor of, 233 

Long, John, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

"Long haul", charges for, 71 

Lord, A. H. M., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 



Lord, H. M., part of, in hunt, 189 
Lords, number of, in Iowa, 163 
Louisa County, Welsh in, 44, 45 
Low Moor, naming of, 30 
Low Moor (England), construction 

supplies from, 30 
Lubbock, A., mention of, 148 
Lubbock, Sir John, son of, 148, 

166 
Lucas, Adolphe, membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Lucas, Welsh in, 45 
Lucas County, mention of, 34; 
Welsh in, 44, 45; English in, 
50 
Lumber, cost of, 84, 85 
Lumber yard, owners of, 177 
Lyon County, improvements in, 97, 
98; land bought in, 101, 116, 
121, 260, 268; taxes in, 107; 
plan for railroad through, 108; 
land business in, 113; houses 
in, 122, 123; breaking in, 124; 
stewards in charge of farms in, 
128 ; visitors to, 229 ; popula- 
tion of, 260; British in, 289 

Macdonald, Dr., dinner presided 

over by, 192 
Machinery, provision for, 65 
McKay, Wm., contracts with, 122 
Maclagan, Mr., services of, on 
cricket team, 191 ; presence of, 
at picnic, 228 
Maclagan, C. D., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Maclagan, G. C, farm of, 136; 
position of, in bank, 176; of- 
fices of, 184, 280; services of, 
on cricket committee, 190; part 
of, in polo match, 203, 204, 208 ; 



INDEX 



321 



injury to, 204; share of, in 

Prairie Club, 222, 283; trip of, 

to Scotland, 230; burial place 

of, 248; letter from, 286 
Maclagan, Mrs. G. C, death of, 

235 
Maclagan, R. B., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Maclagan, Warren and Watson, 

commission business of, 175 
Maclaren, D., part of, in football 

game, 207 
M'Laren, David B., reference to, 

262 
MacNair, A. G. M., western trip 

of, 232 
McPherson, Mr., services of, on 

cricket team, 191 
Madden, J. B., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Mahan, J. T., part of, in "tug 

of war", 208 
Maher, M. T., lignite discovered 

by, 185 
Mahaska County, Welsh in, 44, 

45 ; English in, 50 ; mention of, 

272 
Maitland, A. W., work of, as 

private secretary, 175 ; place of, 

in Prairie Minstrels, 224; trip 

of, to England, 230; return of, 

to England, 248; membership 

of, in Prairie Club, 283 
Malarial fever, crew afQicted with, 

58 
Malcolm Street, 239 
Manchester (England), literature 

distributed in, 36; John B. 

Close at, 69, 77; letters in 

newspapers of, 75, 170; immi- 



grants from, 96, 137; visitor 
from, 229; mention of, 256 

Manchester Down sheep, raising 
of, 133 

Manitoba, wheat growing in, 60, 
76. 

Mann, Alice, advice of, to emi- 
grants, 23-28; book by, 24-28, 
32 

Mansel, E., part of, in football 
game, 207 

Mansel, H. G., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Manufacturers ' Union, formation 
of, 185 

Mardi Gras, trip to, 232 

Margesson, Mr., marriage of, 248 

Margesson, H. P., arrival of, in 
Iowa, 161 ; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Margesson, M. R., farm of, 136; 
arrival of, in Iowa, 161; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Margesson, R., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Market, 148 

Marriott-Dodington, H. P., service 
of, as minister, 237 

Marsh, Arthur Everard, church 
services conducted by, 243; ref- 
erence to, 262; coming of, to 
Iowa, 287 

Marsh, Mrs. Arthur E., coming 
of, to Iowa, 287 

Marsh, Arthur Henry, sketch of 
life of, 287, 288 

Marsh, Percy, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Marsh, S. M., presence of, at 
dance, 227 



322 



INDEX 



Marsh, W. White, farm of, 146; 

reference to, 262 
Marshall County, Canadians in, 46 
Master, A. C. C, membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 283 
Maurice, grain business at, 177; 

Hollanders at, 252 
Medd, W. H. B., part of, in 

cricket match, 209; membership 

of, in Prairie Club, 283 
Medicine Hat (Alberta), English 

resident at, 247, 248 
Melbourne, removal of county seat 

from, 73 
Mellersh, T, G., pamphlet by, 150, 

151 
Mercator's letters, 217 
Merrill, Samuel, letter of, 34; 

criticism of, by Irish, 35 
Merrill, shipments from, 175; men- 
tion of, 188 
Methodist Church (Le Mars), lack 

of respect for, 211 
Middle West, reason for delay in 

settlement of, 178 
Migration, interest in, 7-10 
Miller & Co., butter purchased by, 

136 
Milne, John, guests of, 229 
Milne, Sydney, death of, 175; 

membership of, in Prairie Club, 

283 
Milton, John, mention of, 254 
Milwaukee (Wisconsin), consul at, 

269 
Milwaukee and St. Paul Eailroad, 

lands purchased of, 116 
Minneapolis (Minnesota), grain 

business of Henry J. Moreton 

at, 177; cricket team of, 193; 
English residents at, 247 



Minnesota, emigrants encouraged 
by, 33; wheat raising in, 76; 
hunting in, 89 ; land improved 
in, 98 ; value of land in, 101 ; 
land bought in, 104, 106; move 
of Iowa Land Company into, 
113, 114, 115; amount of land 
owned by English in, 115, 116, 
269; farm pupils in, 150, 154; 
proposed removal of English to, 
158; land owned in, by aliens, 
269 

Mirror, The (Le Mars), editor of, 
219 

''Miss Nancy" emigrants, at- 
titude toward, 28 

Missions, information concerning, 
243, 244 

Mississippi, land owned in, by 
aliens, 268 

Mississippi River, lectures on val- 
ley of, 17, 18; use of corn as 
fuel on steamboats on, 70; soil 
along, 88 

Mississippi Valley, local pride in, 
9; emigration to, 22; agricul- 
tural resources of, 120 

Missouri, visit of Close brothers 
to, 61 

Missouri Land Company, land 
owned by, 268 

Missouri Land and S. S. Co., land 
owned by, 269 

Missouri River, value of lands 
along, 82, 88; bluffs of, 89; end 
of free range on, 245, 246 

Moingona, Scotch in, 48 

Money, lending of, 81, 82 

Mongols, migration of, 7 

Monroe County, Irish in, 43 ; 
Welsh in, 44; Scotch in, 48, 



INDEX 



323 



257; English in, 50; British in, 
257 

Montana, proposed removal of 
British to, 246 

Montgomery, E. H., membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Montgomery County, Welsh in, 44, 
45 

Moody, Dwight L., revival service 
of, 242 

Moore, A. J., presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Moore, A. W., farm of, 137 

Moore, O. A., farm of, 179 

Moors, migration of, 7 

Moravians, presence of, in Iowa, 
17 

Moreton, F. J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Moreton, Henry J., position of, in 
bank, 176; grain business of, 
177; oflfice of, 184; services of, 
on cricket team, 191 ; part of, 
in polo match, 20S; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 222, 
283; trip of, to England, 230; 
residence of, 247 

Moreton, Eeginald, interest of, in 
blooded stock, 137, 138; trip of, 
to England, 230 

Moreton, EejTiolds, farm of, 132, 
133, 144, 145, 146, 179, 180; 
advice of, on sheep raising, 134; 
interest of, in blooded stock, 
137, 138; mention of, 148; 
farm pupils of, 151, 155, 235; 
coming of, to Iowa, 166; pri- 
vate secretary of, 175 ; position 
of, as president of land com- 
pany, 176; drill ordered by, 
181 ; report of coal findings 



made by, 182, 183, 184, 186; 
office of, 184, 190; thanks ex- 
tended by, 184, 185; criticism 
of, 185, 186 ; chase begun at 
farm of, 188; cricket team of, 
190, 191; telephone to farm of, 
213; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 222, 283; guests of, 229; 
address by, 234, 286; church 
services conducted by, 237, 238, 
242, 243; Young Men's Chris- 
tian Association organized by, 
242; dogs raised by, 274; death 
of, 278; letter from, 286 

Moreton, Mrs. Eeynolds, thanks 
extended by, 184, 185 

Moreton 's "pups", game with, 
204 

Morgan, Mr., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Morgan, Mrs., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Morgan, John, bricks made by, 
175 

Morgan, T., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Morris, G., arrival of, in Iowa, 
161 

Morris, J. C, mention of, 215 

Mortgages, business in, 82 

Mowbray, A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Mueller, Count von, part of, in 
polo match, 203, 204 

Murray County (Minnesota), land 
business in, 113 

Muscatine, need of skilled labor 
at, 26 

Muscatine County, Irish in, 43 

Music, club for, 223, 224 

Mylius, Charles, business career of. 



324 



INDEX 



176; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 283 
Myron, Mr., part of, in cricket 

game, 192, 193 
Mystic, English at, 49 

Nairn, Philip, death of, 158; 

reference to, 262 
Nash, J. R., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Nashotah Theological Seminary, 

240 
Neath (England), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 
Nebraska, trip of Close brothers 

to, 61 ; corn raising in, 76 ; 

pioneer conditions in, 88 
"Ned", race won by, 199 
Negroes, refusal of, to work, 61 ; 

absence of, from Iowa, 87 
Nesfield, E., part of, in "tug of 

war", 208; membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Neville, Canon, sermon by, 238 
New England States, immigrants 

from, 17 
"New England of the North- 
west", 166 
New Jersey, comment by editor 

of, 121, 122 
New Mexico, pioneer conditions in, 

88; trip of English through, 

231, 232 
New Orleans (Louisiana), produce 

sold at, 21 ; expositions held at, 

40 
Now York, immigrants from, 17 
New York City, experiences in, 

22; arrival of emigrants at, 28; 

quarantine regulations at, 30, 

31 ; Commissioner of Immigra- 



tion at, 33; cost of transporting 
grain to, 70, 71 ; marriage of 
Wm. B. Close at, 77, 233; trip 
to, to buy land, 81 ; comment 
by papers of, on English in 
Iowa, 166, 167; roughs in, 211 

New World, peopling of, 7, 8 

Newcastle-on-Tyne (England), 
mention of, 258 

Newgas, Benjamin, land owned 
by, 268 ; land company repre- 
sented by, 268 

Newhall, John B., advice of, to 
immigrants, 17-23 ; coming of, 
to Iowa, 18; book by, 18, 19, 
32; influence of, in England, 32 

Newman, A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Newmarch, L. A., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 283 

Newspapers, accounts in, concern- 
ing emigrants, 21, 22 ; criticisms 
of, 96 ; comment in, relative to 
Iowa Land Company, 105; pub- 
licity in, concerning English 
colony, 161-168, 171, 172, 173; 
account of, among English set- 
tlers, 216, 217 

Nicholson, B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Nicholson, James Birrell, farm of, 
136 

Nicholson, R., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Nicholson brothers, residence of, 
247 

"Nippon", prize won by, 201 

Nobles County (Minnesota), land 
bought in, 104, 107, 108, 113, 
116 

Normans, migration of, 7 



INDEX 



325 



Norsemen, migration of, 7 

North America, hardships endured 
in, 8 

North Carolina, immigrants from, 
17 

North, Central and South Ameri- 
can Exposition (New Orleans), 
Iowa display at, 40 

North Dakota, fertility of, 107, 
108; land bought in, 259 

North-Western Coal and Mining 
Company, organization of, 184 

Northwestern Iowa, purchase of 
land in, by Close brothers, 59- 
62, 68-71, 74, 75; trip of Close 
brothers to, 61, 62 ; advantages 
of, 63, 64, 75, 76, 89, 120-128, 
135; farming operations of 
Close brothers in, 63-67; rail- 
roads in, 73, 74; pamphlets on 
farming in, 77-86; physical 
characteristics of, 88 ; fuel in, 
89 ; hunting in, 89 ; servants in, 
89, 91 ; climate of, 91 ; dis- 
advantages of, 91, 169, 170; 
land business in, 113; fame of 
colony in, 161-173 ; description 
of, 167, 168; church life in, 
237-244; disappearance of Eng- 
lish from, 245-252 

Northwestern Polo League, organ- 
ization of, 203 

Norwegians, number of, in Iowa, 
52 

Nottingham (England), literature 
distributed in, 36 

O'Brien, William Smith, county 

named for, 290 
O 'Brien County, railroads in, 72 ; 

origin of names of, 252, 265, 



290 ; population of, 260 ; men- 
tion of, 265, 285; number of 
British in, 289 

O 'Gorman, Richard, letter to, rela- 
tive to immigration, 35 

Ohio, immigrants from, 17; ad- 
vantages of settlers in, 27, 28; 
value of farm buildings in, 269 

Oldfield, C. B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Omaha (Nebraska), journey from, 
103; trains from, 194; polo club 
organized at, 203 

Onawa, polo club organized at, 
203 

Ontario (Canada), live stock in, 
39 

Orange City, English at, 136, 137; 
Hollanders at, 252; founding 
of, 272 

Orde, Julian W., part of, in polo 
match, 208; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 283 

Osceola County, railroads in, 72, 
108; improvements in, 97, 98; 
county seat of, 103; land 
bought in, 104, 113, 116; com- 
pany established in, 106; taxes 
in, 107; business of Close broth- 
ers in, 114; business of Iowa 
Land Company in, 115; houses 
in, 122, 123; breaking in, 124; 
stewards in charge of farms in, 
128, 174; population of, 260; 
farms in, 271 ; British in, 289 

Oskaloosa, "Welsh at, 45; English 
at, 49 

Osmanston, Mr., part of, in foot- 
ball game, 205, 206, 207 

Oswell, T., part of, in paper 
chase, 188 ; services of, on 



}26 



INDEX 



cricket team, 191 
Ottumwa, Welsh at, 45; English 

at, 49 
Oxford Down sheep, raising of, 

133 
Oxford University, rowing contest 

with, 57; graduates of, at Le 

Mars, 139, 238 

Pacific Ocean, voyage across, 26 

Paget, Lord Alfred, son of, 166 

Paget, Alfred H., soap factory of, 
175, 176; part of, in athletic 
meet, 201; part of, in football 
game, 205, 206, 207; part of, 
in tennis tournament, 208; part 
of, in cricket match, 209; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Paget, Almeric, coming tof, to 
English colony, 143; title of, 
249; marriage of, 249 

Palace Dray Line, owner of, 177 

Paley, Fred, commission business 
of, 174; cricket matches ar- 
ranged by, 190; office of, 190, 
193; horse owned by, 199; 
presence of, at picnic, 228; 
burial place of, 248; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 283 

Paley, Mrs. Fred, injury of, 199; 
sketches by, 217 

Paley 's Theology, author of, 139 

Pamphlet on farming in Iowa, 77- 
86 

Panhandle, purchase of land in, 
by Close brothers, 118 

Panic of 1877, condition of farm- 
ers during, 70 

Paper chase, holding of, 188, 189 

Paper mill, need of, 149 

Pardee, O. T., part of, in cricket 



game, 192 ; part of, in polo 

match, 208 ; membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Parisian Grand Prix, winner of, 

198 
Parke, A., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Parke, C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 283 
Parke, E. R., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Parke, W., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Patrick, R. T., song written hj, 

288 
Patten, H. S., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Paul, Edward, land owned by, 116 
Paul, H., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Paullin, D. Edward, residence of, 

285 
Paullin, Daniel, advice of, to 

William B. Close, 58, 59, 68, 

233, 258 ; investments of, 61 

service of, as Close aijcut, 68 

sketch of life of, 258, 259 

death of, 285 
Paullin, Henry, residence of, 285 
Paullin, Mary, marrip.ge of, to 

Wm. B. Close, 59, 77, 233, 285 
Paullin brothers, farm of, 285 
Paullina, mention of, 285 
Paulton, Walter Abraham, trip of, 

to England, 230; marriage of, 

233; return of, to England, 

248 ; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 284 
Paulton, Will, residence of, 247; 

membership of, in Prairie Club, 

284 



INDEX 



327 



Paulton brothers, farm of, 136, 

137 
PajTi, Mr., farm of, 181 
Payne, Mr., part of, in cricket 
game, 192, 209; money won by, 
200 
Payne, F., part of, in athletic 
meet, 201; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 
Pa^nie, Randolph, marriage of, 
233; residence of, 247; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 284 
Payne, W. W., part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 ; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 
Pease, Miss, presence of, at dance, 

227 
Peel, Albert, land owned by, in 

United States, 268 
Pell, Mr., visit of, to America, 

172 
Pella, mention of, 272 
Pennsylvania, immigrants from, 

17; Wm. B. Close in, 61 
Perkins, George D., appointment 
of, as Commissioner of Immi- 
gration, 38 
Perry, Bishop, 238 
Perth (Scotland), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 
Peters. F. D., presence of, ,at 

dance, 227 
^'Petrarch", prize won by, 198, 

199 
Phenhallagan, D. G., part of, in 

athletic meet, 201 
Philadelphia (Pennsylvania), re- 
gatta at, 57, 58; marriage of 
Eov. Cunningham at, 240 
Philadelphia Centennial Exposi- 
tion, Iowa display at, 40 



Phillips, Marshall Co., land owned 

by, 268 
Philpotts, S., syndicate headed by, 

268 
Philson, Mr., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Picnics, description of, 227, 228 
Pierce, J. T., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Fioneer-Press (St. Paul), refer- 
ence to, 110, 116 
Pioneers, hardships of, 8; quali- 
fications of, 26; sale of lands 
by, 68 
Pipestone (Minnesota), hotel at, 
113 ; Frederick B. Close at, 114 ; 
office of Close brothers at, 114; 
removal of Close brothers to, 
116, 230, 231; mention of, 189 
Pipestone County (Minnesota), 

purchase of land in, 113, 116 
Pipestone Jockey Club, meeting 

of, 201 
"Pirates of Penzance", giving 

of, 241 
Pitts, C. W., acknowledgment to, 

11 
Plymouth Coal Company, organi- 
zation of, 183 
Plymouth County, Canadians in, 
46; English in, 50; purchase of 
land in, by Close brothers, 68, 
71, 99, 100, 120, 121, 157; 
railroads in, 72 ; first settlements 
in, 72; plans for English col- 
ony in, 81 ; description of, 88, 
92, 93 ; need of laborers in, 96 ; 
improvements in, 97, 98; towns 
platted in, 100, 101; value of 
land in, 101, 264; land titles 
in, 102 ; land in, 105, 285 ; taxes 



xxii 



328 



INDEX 



in, 107; vote of, on prohibitory 
amendment, 109 ; land business 
in, 113, 114; agricultural re- 
sources of, 120, 168, 269 ; houses 
in, 122 ; breaking in, 124 ; 
planting of trees in, 125; Dutch 
in, 127; land owned by English 
in, 131 ; farm in, 136 ; lords in, 
163; rewards offered by, for 
discovery of coal, 179 ; first 
rural telephone in, 213; origin 
of name of, 252, 290, 291; 
population of, 260; encourage- 
ment of immigrants to, 271 ; 
number of British in, 289 

Plymouth County Agricultural So- 
ciety, annual fair of, 199 

Poland China hogs, raising of, 
132, 136 

Polk County, Irish in, 43 ; Welsh 
in, 44, 45; Canadians in, 46; 
Scotch in, 48; English in, 50; 
British in, 257 

Polled Angus cattle, raising of, 
136 

Pollock, Baron, decision of, 154 

Polo, death of Frederick B. Close 
during game of, 119; playing 
of, 203, 204, 208 

Population, westward movement 
of, 70 ; increase in, 73 

Portland, football game with, 205, 
206, 207 

Portland Township (Pljonouth 
County), purchase of land in, 
by Close brothers, 68 

Portlandville, funeral at, 238 

Portsea (England), vicar at, 239 

Pottawattamie County, Irish in, 
43; Canadians in, 46; Scotch in, 
48; English in, 50; British in, 



257; rank of, as farming com- 
munity, 269 

Potter, R., coming of, to Iowa, 
166 

Potter, R. E., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Potter, Thomas Bayley, son of, 
139 

Poweshiek County, Irish in, 43; 
Scotch in, 48 

Poweshiek Township (Jasper Coun- 
ty), Welsh in, 45 

Prairie Club, races held by, 201 ; 
establishment of, 222 ; members 
of, 222, 223, 226, 247, 282-284; 
rooms of, 222, 223 ; concert at, 
224; hospitality of, to Ameri- 
cans, 224, 225 ; effect of pro- 
hibition on, 226 ; news received 
at, 235; minute book of, 281, 
282 

Prairie Minstrels, personnel of, 
223, 224; concert by, 224 

Preemption, lands secured under, 
73 

Presbyterian Church (Sioux City), 
substitute minister in, 242, 243 

Prescott, Percy E., dray business 
of, 177; guests of, 230; resi- 
dence of, 247; reference to, 
262 ; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 284 

Prestledge, 137 

Preston, Mr., services of, on 
cricket team, 191 

Preston, A. Q., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Preston, J. H., farm of, 137; in- 
terest of, in blooded stock, 137, 
138 ; share of, in organization 
of the Prairie Club, 222; burial 



INDEX 



329 



place of, 248; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Preston Township (Plymouth 
County), purchase of land in, 
by Close brothers, 68 

Price, F. R., office of, 190; part 
of, in cricket game, 193; share 
of, in Prairie Club, 222, 284; 
place of, in Prairie Minstrels, 
224; burial place of, 248; col- 
lege of, 273 

Price, H. J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Probert, John W., acknowledg- 
ment to, 12 ; statement of, rela- 
tive to Close brothers, 264; 
statement of, relative to land 
titles, 265; office of, 267 

Professions, practice of, in Eng- 
lish colony, 176 

Prohibition, relation of, to Eng- 
lish immigration, 109-112 ; at- 
titude toward, in English col- 
ony, 214, 215 

Prohibition amendment, legislative 
adoption of, 109; popular vote 
on, 109, 110; attitude of Eng- 
lish toward, 109, 110, 111, 112; 
unconstitutionality of, 112 

Property, price of, 20, 21 ; law 
relative to, 39 

Protestant Episcopal Church, work 
of, 238 

Public schools (English), men 
from, 150 

Publicity, work for, in regard to 
Iowa, 87-93 

Pullman (Washington), English 
resident of, 248 

Pullman cars, English in, 162 

Ptmch, cartoon in, on Iowa col- 



ony, 172, 173; subscriptions for, 
216 
Pupils, farm, taking of, by Close 
brothers, 85, 86; service of, on 
farms, 132 ; origin of idea of, 
141; status of, 141, 142, 151, 
152, 154; account of, in Eng- 
lish colony, 141-156; number of, 

142, 146, 151 ; dissipation of, 

143, 153, 155, 210, 211, 212, 
213 ; advertisements for, 147- 
151, 154; disadvantages of, 152, 
153; abandonment of system of, 
153; stories of, 154, 155 

"Pups", nickname of, 144, 274 

Quarantine regulations, need 
for improvement of, 30, 31 

Queenborough, Lord, mention of, 
143, 249 

Queen's Bench, Court of, case in, 
involving farm pupils, 153, 154 

Queen's College, graduates of, 273 

Quincy (Illinois), Daniel Paullra 
from, 58, 59; William B. Close 
at, 58, 59; mention of, 285 

Quorn, platting of, 100, 101, 291; 
English farmers at, 131, 132; 
cricket practised at, 190; foot- 
ball team of, 204; church serv- 
ices at, 239; origin of name of, 
252 

Quorn Farm, mention of, 176 

Quorn Hunt, mention of, 291 

Race course, condition of, 196 
Races, mention of, 195, 196; at- 
tendance at, 197; holding of, 
197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 207, 
208 
Railroads, literature disseminated 



}30 



INDEX 



by, 34; efforts of, to dispose of 

land, 40, 41; building of, 70, 

71 ; number of, in northwestern 

Iowa, 72, 73, 88, 127; rates on, 

78 
Eamsey, Mr., part of, in cricket 

game, 191, 192 
Range, disappearance of, 245, 246 
Ratliff, Thos., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Raton (New Mexico), visit of 

English to, 231, 232 
Raymond, O. T., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 222, 284 
Reade, R., part of, in "tug of 

war", 208 
Reading (England), clergyman 

from, 238 
Red River Valley, wheat growing 

in, 60 ; offer to inspect land in, 

107, 108 ; Dalrymple farm in, 

259 
Regatta, Close brothers in, 57, 58 
Reid, A. A. P., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Reid, Edward, land owned by, 268 
Reid, F. R., membership of, dn 

Prairie Club, 284 
Religion, influence of, in English 

colony, 237-244 
Rent, terms of, 65, 66, 67 
Republican party, attitude of Eng- 
lish toward, 216 
Revell, Mr., part of, in paper 

chase, 188 
Richards, Mr., part of, in paper 

chase, 188 
Richards, C. N., office of, 280 
Richards, G. J., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 



Richards, H. O. K., membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Richards, H. W., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Richardson and Hospers, Dutch 
immigration encouraged by, 127, 
271, 272 

Richmond, Mr., daughter of, 288 

Richmond, William, church serv- 
ices conducted by, 243 

Rickards, H., farm of, 137; busi- 
ness interests of, 175; place of, 
in Prairie Minstrels, 223; pres- 
ence of, at picnic, 228; trip of, 
to England, 230; return of, to 
England, 248 ; reference to, 262 ; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
284 

Ricketts, purchase of land at, by 
Close brothers, 59 

Ridgeways, A., horse owned by, 
197 

Roads, condition of, in northwest- 
ern Iowa, 89 

Robert Benson and Company, firm 
of, 277 

Roberts, F. C, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Roberts, Frost, and Heaphy, busi- 
ness of, 175 

Robertson, C. L., part of, in 
athletic meet, 201 ; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Robertson, E. F., place of, in 
Prairie Minstrels, 224; return 
of, to England, 248; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Robinson, F. R., part of, in ath- 
letic meet, 201 ; part of, in 
football game, 206, 207; mem- 



INDEX 



331 



bership of, in Prairie Club, 222, 
284 

Eochdale (England), represent- 
ative of, 139 

Rochester (New York), race 
course at, 194 

Rock County (Minnesota), land 
bought in, 104, 113, 116 

Rock Rapids, oflSce opened at, 101, 
102; mission church at, 244 

Rodgers, Mr., syndicate headed by, 
268 

Rollo, Eric, part of, in football 
game, 206 ; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Rollo, H. E., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Roman Catholics, settlement of, in 
Iowa, 43, 44 

Romanes, F. E., race won by, 
202 ; part of, in tennis tourna- 
ment, 208; place of, in Prairie 
Minstrels, 223; presence of, at 
picnic, 228; death of, 248; serv- 
ices of, on committee, 280; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
284 

Ronaldson, A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 222, 284; picnic 
by, 228; burial place of, 248 

Ronaldson, Mrs. A., picnic by, 228 

Rowing, interest of Close broth- 
ers in, 57, 58 

Rubio, Mr., book by, 27 

Ruble, Mr., farm of, 181 

Rugby (Tennessee), English com- 
munity at, 157-160, 275 

Rugby colony, story of, 157-160; 
visit to, 276 

Rugby football, playing of, 204, 
205, 206, 207 



Rugby Public School, graduates 
from, 157 

* ' Runners ' ', emigrants cautioned 
against, 22 

Russell, "Bull Run", book pub- 
lished by, 265 

Russians, number of, in Iowa, 257 

St. George's Benevolent Asso- 
ciation OF Clinton, president 
of, 30 

St. George's Church (Le Mars), 
dedication of, 240 ; services in, 
240, 241, 242; program for, 
241; membership of, 243, 244 

"St. Kames", farm pupil system 
described by, 144-147 

St. Leonard, barony of, 236 

St. Louis (Missouri), polo team 
of, 204 

St. Paul (Minnesota), criticism of 
press of, relative to immigra- 
tion, 96; conference held at, 
100; mention of, 103; welcome 
extended at, 105 ; removal of 
Iowa Land Company to, 115 ; 
quotation from newspaper of, 
116, 117, 129-131; market at, 
166; cricket team of, 191, 192, 
193 ; trains from, 194 ; horse 
races mentioned in press of, 
196; guests from, 227 

St. Paul and Omaha Railroad, 
train furnished by, 105 

St. Paul and Sioux City Railroad, 
route of, 73; land commissioner 
of, 100; land agents of, 101; 
letter to, 103; title disputed by, 
104; town site purchased from, 
113; foreign land owners along, 
116 



332 



INDEX 



St. Paul Pioneer Press, interest 

of, in English colony, 166 (see 

also Pioneer-Press) 
St. Vincent, Earl, 248 
St. Vincent, Lord, sons of, 145; 

death of, 235 
Salix, polo club organized at, 203 
Saloon, cost of travel by, 78 
Saloons, names of, 210; criticism 

of, 210, 211; account of, at 

Le Mars, 210-215; fight in, 213, 

214 
Sammis, J. U., office of, 280 
Sammis brothers, part of, in polo 

match, 204 
Sankey, Ira D., revival service of, 

242 
Saskatchewan (Canada), lowans 

in, 47 
Sawyer, S. B., contracts with, 122 
Saxons, migration of, 7 
Scandinavians, representation of, 

on immigration board, 34 
Schools, provision for, 127 
Scotch, number of, in Iowa, 17, 

32, 47, 48, 51, 52, 289, 290 
Scotch Land Company, land owned 

by, 268, 269 
Scotland, literature distributed in, 

34; immigrants from, 136, 265; 

Le Mars newspaper sent to, 

163; trips of colonists to, 230, 

234; return of colonists to, 246 
Scott County, Irish in, 43; Cana- 
dians in, 46; Scotch in, 48; 

English in, 50; British in, 257 
Scougel, Mr., part of, in cricket 

match, 209 
Seattle (Washington), English 

resident at, 248 
Sedgwick, Mr., farm of, 181 



Seed, cost of, 67 

Seney, English farm near, 137; 
hockey team of, 202 

Sentinel, The (Le Mars), reporter 
of, 177; libel suit against, 219; 
church news in, 240 (see also 
Le Mars Sentinel) 

Seppings, G. W., church services 
conducted by, 241 

Sergeant's Bluff, farm near, 233 

Servants, supply of, 89, 91; lack 
of, 169, 170; status of, 171 

Shakespeare, William, mention of, 
253 

Shambaugh, Benj. P., acknowledg- 
ment to, 13 

Sharp, R. W., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Sharp, W., reference to, 262 

Sharp, W. A., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Shaw, Alfred, reference to, 262 

Shearman, Henry, libel suit 
brought by, 153, 154 

Sheep, advantages of northwest- 
ern Iowa for raising of, 88, 89, 
92; number of, 132, 133; pro- 
fits of, 133, 134; loss of, by 
freezing, 134; range feeding of, 
1.35 

Sheffield (England), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 

Sheldon, number of people from, 
196 ; program at, 224 ; mission 
church at, 243, 244 

Sheppard, George, Iowa praised 
by, 28 ; services of, to emi- 
grants, 28, 29 

Shorthorn cattle, raising of, 132, 
136, 137 

Shuttleworth, J. Duehurst. pamph- 



INDEX 



333 



let prepared by, 38, 39; sig- 
nature of, 39; newspaper ac- 
count of, 39 
Sibley, office of Close brothers at, 
102, 113, 114; visit of ducal 
party to, 103 ; improvements in 
land near, 104; headquarters of 
company at, 104; prospects of, 
106; building at, 108; English 
activities in, 115 ; steamship 
agent at, 175; cricket team of, 
193; number of people from, 
196 ; polo team of, 208 ; pro- 
gram at, 224; removal of Close 
brothers to, 230, 231 ; mission 
church at, 243, 244; mention 
of, 271 
Simms, H. A., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Simpson, W. D., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Sinclair, Mr., part of, in cricket 

game, 192, 209 
Sinclair, A. C, part of, in foot- 
ball game, 207; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 
Sinclair, C, part of, in "tug of 

war", 208 
Sioux Center, Hollanders at, 252 
Sioux City, Irish at, 43, 290; 
Canadians at, 47, 290; Scotch 
at, 48, 290; English at, 49, 
290; railroad to, 72; land of- 
fice at, 104, 105; land com- 
missioner at, 105; Close broth- 
ers at, 114, 121; English farm 
near, 137; stock judging at, 
138; English lawyer at, 176; 
grain business of, 177; dray 
line at, 177; guests from, 196, 
226, 227, 233; races at, 201; 



polo at, 203, 204; account of 
disorders at Le Mars in news- 
papers of, 211, 212; visits at, 
231; entertainment at, 241; 
Episcopal church at, 243; Eng- 
lish residents at, 247; burial at, 
248; population of, 260 

Sioux City and St. Paul Railroad, 
coming of, to Iowa, 72; foreign 
lando^\^lers along, 116; land 
commissioner of, 256; land of, 
264 

Sioux City Journal, mention of, 
111 

Sioux City Planing Mill, 176 

Sioux City Quadrille Band, music 
by, 227 

Sioux County, railroads in, 72; 
description of, 88 ; improvements 
in, 97, 98; value of land in, 
101, 264; taxes in, 107; build- 
ings in, 113, 122; business of 
Close brothers in, 114, 123; pur- 
chase of land in, 116; agricul- 
tural resources of, 120, 269; 
breaking in, 124; Dutch in, 127; 
need of laborers in, 128; lords 
in, 163; farms in, 238, 239; 
population of, 260; encourage- 
ment of immigrants to, 271; 
British in, 289 

Sioux Falls (South Dakota), plan 
for railroad to, 108 ; polo club 
organized at, 203; English resi- 
dent at, 247 

Slayton, C. W., company repre- 
sented by, 104 

Sloan, polo club organized at, 203 

Smalley, J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Smith, George, reference to, 262 



334 



INDEX 



Smyth, Chas. G., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Smyth, James H,, reference to, 

263 
Smyth, R., return of, to England, 

246 
Smyth, W. S., reference to, 263 
Soap factory, operation of, 175, 

176 
Social life, account of, in English 

colony, 221-236 
Society, lack of, 91; provision for, 

149 
* ' Soiree Dansante ' ', description 

of, 227 
"Soldier Farm", statement con- 
cerning, 66, 67 
Soldier Township (Crawford Coun- 
ty), report of farm in, 66, 67 
Song, colony, words of, 249-251 
Soudan, 230, 235 
South America, hardships endured 

in, 8 
South Carolina, immigrants from, 

17 
South Dakota, land improved in, 

98; fertility of, 107, 108; 

origin of names in, 252 
Southport (England), pamphlet 

prepared at, 38, 39 
Southworth, H. B., return of, to 

England, 247 
Sowerby, C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
"Speculation", rider thrown by, 

198 
Speculators, lands held by, 73, 

74; sale of lands by, 74 
Spencer, mission church at, 243, 

244 
Spirit Lake, plan for tournament 



at, 202; boat races at, 202; 
mission church at, 243, 244 

Spirit Lake and Western Rail- 
road, plan for construction of, 
108 

Sports, kinds of, in Iowa, 187- 
209 

"Sportsman", race with, 200 

Stafford, Lord, visit of, to Iowa, 
103, 104 

Stallion, description of, 138 

Stanhope, R,, arrival of, in Iowa, 
161 ; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 284 

Stanier, Guy, membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Stanton, Louise, purchase of land 
from, 71 

Starky, B. B., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Statter, Fred, burial place of, 248 

Statter, G. F., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Statter, W. H., Iowa recommended 
by, 92; reference to, 262 

Steamship agent, service of W. 
Gladstone as, 175 

Steamships, rates on, 78 

Steerage, cost of travel by, 78 

Stephens, Nassau Somerville, army 
record of, 240; church services 
conducted by, 240, 241 

Stevens, W. H. P., part of, in 
football game, 207 ; place of, in 
Prairie Minstrels, 223; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Stewards, employment of, 128, 174 

Stickney, Mr., railroad financed 
by, 277 

Stirling (Scotland), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 



INDEX 



335 



Stock, provision for, 65 

Stock fanns, pupils on, 85, 86 

Stock raising, interest of Close 

brothers in, 60; Iowa suitable 

for, 61, 62, 76, 92, 93; best 

locations for, 76; capital needed 

for, 79, 80, 86; difficulties of, 

91; advantages of, 129; profits 

of, 132, 245; emphasis on, 137, 

138 
Stockwell, 138 
Stoner, W. G., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Stoughton, H., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Strait, Colonel, coal discovered by, 

ISO, 181, 182 
Stubbs, Mr., services of, on cricket 

team, 191 
Stubbs, J. W. H., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Stubbs, W., share of, in organiza- 
tion of the Prairie Club, 222 
Sturgess, Captain, visit of, 229 
Sturgess, Mr., part of, in football 

game, 207 
Sturgess, A. H., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Sturgess, E., part of, in "tug of 

war", 208 
Sturgess, Edw. D., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Sugden, A. F., sheep lost by, 134; 

mention of, 148 
Sugden, Mrs. A. F., return of, to 

England, 247 
Sugden, Florence Emily, marriage 

of, to H. L. P. Chiene, 233 
Sugden, Henry Frank, advantages 

of Iowa pointed out by, 92 ; 

office of, 183 ; rumor of title of. 



236; membership of, in Prairie 

Club, 284 
Sugden, Mrs. Henry F., denial by, 

236 
"Sunbeam", prize won by, 198 
Supreme Court of Iowa, decision 

of, on prohibitory amendment, 

214 
Sussex (England), colonist from, 

234 
Sutherland, Duke of, visit of, in 

Iowa, 103, 104, 229; land 

bought by, 104, 107, 268; town 

named for, 265, 290 
Sutherland, origin of name of, 

252, 265 
Sutton, A. F., services of, on 

cricket team, 191 
Sutton, A. T., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Swan, C. M., presence of, at dance, 

227 
Swansea (England), literature dis- 
tributed in, 36 
Swedes, number of, in Iowa, 17, 

52 
Swinburne, W., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Swinton, J. C. B., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Sykes, Mr,, land owned by, 175, 

268 ; visit of, to Iowa, 229, 259, 

260 
Sykes and Hughes, amount of land 

owned by, 116 

Tabard Inn, 159 

Tally-ho riding, popularity of, 188 

Tama County, Canadians in, 46; 

Scotch in, 48 
Tarleton, H., part of, in football 



336 



INDEX 



game, 207; membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Tartars, migration of, 7 
Tattersall, Edmund, races won by, 

138 
Taxes, amount of, 67, 89, 97, 107; 

reduction of, for tree planting, 

125, 126 
"Tax-Payers, Our British", edi- 
torial on, 107 
Taylor, Ernest, death of, in Iowa, 

234 
Taylor, H. L., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Taylor, L., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Taylor, T. C, membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
Taylor County, land purchased in, 

100 
Taylour, E. E., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Tea, sale of, at Le Mars, 175 
Tenants, agreement of Close 

brothers with, 64, 65, 66, 67, 

76, 124, 126, 265; breaking 

done by, 124; number of, 126, 

127; nationality of, 127; kind 

of, 267, 268 
Tennant, Robert, land owned by, 

268 
Tennessee, immigrants from, 17; 

story of English community in, 

157-160 
Tennis, playing of, 202, 208 
Tete des Morts (Canada), visitors 

from, 229 
Texas, mention of, 39; pioneer 

conditions in, 88; purchase of 

land in, by Close brothers, 118; 

trip to, 235; land owned in, by 



aliens, 268; value of live stock 
in, 269 

Thales, mention of, 182, 183 

Thames Eiver, rowing contest on, 
57 

Thelwell, E. L., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Thompson, Sir Basil, coming of, 
to Iowa, 143 

Thompson, H. W., reference to, 
262 

Thomson, Mr., part of, in foot- 
ball game, 205, 206, 207 

Thomson, B. H., place of, in 
Prairie Minstrels, 223; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Thomson, W., law practice of, 176 

Thoroughbreds, importation of, 
138 

"Thunderer, The", visit of, to 
Iowa, 167 

Thursby, E. H., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Tibbitt, J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Tiffney, Mr., part of, in cricket 
match, 209 

Times, The (London), letters con- 
cerning Iowa in, 75 

Titles, 163, 236 

Tobacco, effect of, on soil, 60 

Todrich, Mr., part of, in paper 
chase, 188 

Tom Broivn's Schooldays, author 
of, 157 

Tottenham, E. H., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Touch, J. W., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Towns, establishment of, 29, 30, 
100, 101 



INDEX 



337 



Townshend, S. Nugent, farm pupil 

system described by, 144-147; 

trip in charge of, 232 
Track meet, holding of, 201 
Traer, Scotch in, 48 
Trail County (North Dakota), 

land bought in, 259 
Trains, chartering of special, 196, 

226, 227 
Transportation, charges for, 70, 

71; lack of, 178 
Travel, amount of, by English, 

228-232 
Trees, planting of, 125, 126 
Trego County (Kansas), Close 

brothers in, 117, 118 
Trinity College, men from, in 

centennial regatta, 57, 58; 

clergyman from, 237; fellow of, 

239 
Troscoed, location of, 137 
Trotter, H. G., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Troy Township (Iowa County), 

Welsh in, 45 
"True", prize won by, 197 
"Tug of war", holding of, 208 
Tullichewan Castle, 136 
Turks, migration of, 7 
Turner, Jonathan, daughter of, 

258 
Tutor, advertisement for, 176 
Twain, Mark, mention of, 171 
Tweedale, Marquis of, mention of, 

268 
Twidale, J., medical practice of, 

176 
Typhoid fever, epidemic of, at 

Rugby colony, 158 

Union County, Irish in, 43 



Union Township (Johnson Coun- 
ty), Welsh in, 45 

Union Township (Plymouth Coun- 
ty), land purchased in, 99 

United Mine Workers of America, 
president of, 45 

United States, immigration author- 
ized by, 10; prejudices against, 
19; immigration to, 23, 26, 31, 
38; trip of Close brothers 
through, 59, 60; land titles in, 
83; amount of land owned by 
aliens in, 116, 117 

United team, game with, 205, 206, 
207 

Utica (New York), paper pub- 
lished at, 45 

Van der Zee, Jacob, visit of, to 
Le Mars, 277, 278 

Van Sommer, J., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Veal, Frederick Kingsbury, lum- 
ber yard of, 177; part of, in 
* ' tug of war ' ', 208 ; marriage 
of, 233; residence of, 247; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
284 

Vernon, W. G. Harcourt, position 
of, in bank, 176; part of, in 
cricket game, 193; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Victoria, Queen, celebration in 
honor of, 207, 208, 209, 220, 
241, 280 ; toast to, 231 ; prayers 
for, 238 

Viola Township (Osceola County), 
houses in, 123 

Virgin land, plan of Close broth- 
ers for farming of, 63-67 

Virginia, Frederick B. Close in, 



338 



INDEX 



57, 58, 60, 62; price of land 
in, 60, 61 ; people of, 61 
Voltiguer-Garland, 138 

Waddilove, Mr., wagers won by, 
200 

Waddilove, A. C, part of, in foot- 
ball game, 205, 206, 207 

Waddilove, J. C, membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Wade, Armigel W., reference to, 
263 

Wake, T., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Wakefield, Jack W., stock farm 
of, 137; interest of, in cricket, 
190, 193; horse ridden by, 199, 
200; attempt of, to horse whip 
editor, 211 ; incident concerning, 
213, 239, 286; mention of, 228; 
presence of, at picnic, 228; 
visit of, to England, 228; death 
of, 248; reference to, 262; col- 
lege of, 274; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Wakefield, John, (see Wakefield, 
Jack W.) 

Wales, literature distributed in, 
34 

Wales (Montgomery County), 
Welsh in, 45 

Walker, Mr., part of, in paper 
chase, 188; presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Walker, R., interest of, in cricket, 
190, 191 ; part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 

Walker, Richard, place of, in 
Prairie Minstrels, 224 ; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 284 



Walker, Robert, membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Walkinshaw, J. M. C, race won 
by, 202; part of, in football 
game, 205, 206, 207; place of, 
in Prairie Minstrels, 223 ; mem- 
bership of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Waller, H. N., buck killed by, 
189 ; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 284 

Walter, Mr., address by, 167; 
article by, 171, 172 

Walters, John, presence of, at 
wedding, 233, 234 

Wann, W. Hyndman, reference to, 
262; membership of, in Prairie 
Club, 284 

Wapello County, Irish in, 43; 
Welsh in, 44, 45; English in, 
50; British in, 257 

"War between the Races", edi- 
torial on, 211, 212 

Ward, George E., cattle raised 
by, 137; residence of, 247 

Warner, George, contract with, 
122 

Warren, Mr., presence of, at pic- 
nic, 228 

Warren, D., part of, in "tug of 
war", 208 

Warren, James Brough, farm of, 
136; meat market of, 175; 
marriage of, 233 ; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Water, lack of, 180 

Watkins, S. R., acknowledgment 
to, 11 

Watson, Mr., part of, in polo 
match, 208; presence of, at 
picnic, 228 



INDEX 



339 



Watson, H. A., services of, on 
cricket team, 191; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 222, 284; 
western trip of, 232 

Watson, Hugh, death of, 234 

Watson, J. G., services of, on 
cricket team, 191; part of, in 
polo match, 203, 204; member- 
ship of, in Prairie Club, 222, 
284; burial place of, 248 

Weare, Miss, presence of, at 
dance, 227 

Webster, D., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Webster County, Irish in, 43; 
Scotch in, 48 

Weddings, account of, 232-234 

Weir, A. Y., part of, in ''tug of 
war", 208; residence of, 247; 
membership of, in Prairie Club, 
284 

Wells, cost of, 66; dragging of, 
]23 

Welsh, number of, in Iowa, 44, 
45, 51, 52, 289 

Welton, establishment of, 29; fail- 
ure of, 29, 30 

Westiield, Mr., part of, in cricket 
match, 209 

W^est Fork, cricket team, of, 191 ; 
church services at, 239 (see also 
Quorn) 

West Fork plate, calling of, 197; 
winner of, 208 

Westbourne Farm, 137 

Western Town Lot Company, 

towns platted by, 290, 291 
Whalley, Captain, land owned by, 

268 
What Cheer, Scotch at, 48 ; name 
of, 48; English at, 49 



Wheat, production of, 39, 67; 
best location for growing of, 
60, 76; blight on, 65, 91; use 
of new land for, 66; price of, 
67; waste of, 70; transportation 
charges on, 70, 71 ; profits on, 
76; advantages of raising, 129 

White, Charles A., geological sur- 
vey made by, 182 

White Pass and Yukon Railway, 
building of, 118, 119 

White Star Line, transportation 
on, 143 

Whitney, Miss, marriage of Al- 
meric Paget to, 143 

Whitney, Harry Payne, sister of, 
249 

"Wide Awake Hose Company, 
The", member of, 219 

Wild, J., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Wilde, Mr., presence of, at picnic, 
228 

Wilde, Oscar, lecture by, 231 

Williamsburg, Welsh at, 45 

Williamson, E. P., membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 

Wilson, G., membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Wilson Township (Osceola Coun- 
ty), houses in, 123 

"Windsor Palace", naming of, 
210 

"Wine", explanation of, 287 

Winneshiek County, Irish in, 43; 
Canadians in, 46 

Winstanley, E., part of, in tennis 
tournament, 208 ; membership 
of, in Prairie Club, 284 

Winter, severity of, 151 

Wisconsin, description of, 19; im- 



340 



INDEX 



migration encouraged by, 33 ; 
tenants from, 106; advertising 
matter distributed in, 114; hunt- 
ing in, 189 

Wise, Alexander A., work of, on 
commission, 34, 37 

Women 's Emigration Society, 
founding of, 261, 262 

Wood, Mr., farm of, 181 

Wood, supply of, in northwestern 
Iowa, 89 

Woodard, C. P., coal discovered 
by, 184 

Woodbury County, Irish in, 43 ; 
Canadians in, 46 ; Scotch in, 
48, 257; English in, 50; pur- 
chase of land in, by Close 
brothers, 68, 71, 99, 100; rail- 
road in, 72 ; description of, 88 ; 
value of land in, 101, 264; 
taxes in, 107 ; land business in, 
113, 114; houses in, 122; plant- 
ing of trees in, 125 ; loss of 
sheep in, 134; British in, 257, 
289 ; population of, 260 ; rank 
of, as farming community, 269 

Woodbury County fair, races at, 
201 

Woods Brothers, mention of, 177 

Wool, market for, 134 

Work, necessity for, 25, 26 

Workingmen 's Emigrant Associa- 
tion of London, letter to, 34 

World's Exposition (Philadel- 
phia), awards made at, 39 

World's Exposition (St. Louis), 
awards made at, 39 



World's Industrial and Cotton 
Centennial Exposition (New 
Orleans), Iowa display at, 40 

W^orth County, land purchased in, 
100 

Worthington (Minnesota), office 
at, 108 

Wraight, P., part of, in football 
game, 207; membership of, in 
Prairie Club, 284 

Wright, Edward T., advantages of 
Iowa pointed out by, 92 ; ref- 
erence to, 262 

Wright, George H., trees planted 
by, 125 

T Drych, publication of, 45 
Yankees, antagonism of, to young 
Englishmen, 213, 214 (see also 
Americans) 
Yankton (South Dakota), polo 
club organized at, 203 ; death 
of Charles Dacres at, 281 
Yonge, F. A., membership of, in 

Prairie Club, 284 
York, Archbishop of, son of, 176 
Young, Mr., farm of, 181 
Young, David A., membership of, 

in Prairie Club, 284 
Young, W. B., marriage of, 233 
Young, William, return of, to 
Scotland, 246; membership of, 
in Prairie Club, 284 
Young Men's Christian Associa- 
tion, organization of, 242 

"Zoe", prize won by, 197 



